


Traversing Souls

by gabbi73



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Anal Sex, Angst, Blow Jobs, Bottom Draco Malfoy, Consent, Drama, First Kiss, First Time, Fluff, Hand Jobs, Happy Ending, Hogwarts Eighth Year, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Post-War, Potions, Romance, Slow Build, Snogging, Top Harry Potter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:06:58
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 26,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26223112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gabbi73/pseuds/gabbi73
Summary: Going back to Hogwarts after the war was a necessity not a wish.Draco Malfoy finds himself unable to let go of the past as it hunts his nightmares and keeps him up at night. Being tired beyond reason forces Draco to try and find a solution in order to survive the school year.A tricky potion and a meddling Harry Potter can only lead to mistakes being made.And so the journey towards reversing the mistake begins.
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Comments: 12
Kudos: 282





	1. The return to Hogwarts

**Author's Note:**

> “You learned to run from what you feel, and that's why you have nightmares.  
> To deny is to invite madness. To accept is to control.”
> 
> ― Megan Chance.
> 
> “I still get nightmares. In fact, I get them so often I should be used to them by now.  
> I'm not.  
> No one ever really gets used to nightmares.”
> 
> \- Mark Z. Danielewski.

The idea of returning to Hogwarts was far from what he had imagined. Yet, the possibility of finding any sort of work in the wizarding world without N.E.W.T.s. after the war was close to zero when your last name was Malfoy.

“Draco…It’s just one year and then you’ll have your N.E.W.T.s.” Narcissa looked worriedly at him as she spoke. The decision for him to go back to Hogwarts had seemed tougher for her than it had for him. However, Draco had always been good at hiding his emotions, his mother, not so much.

“I’ll be fine, mother.” Draco was insistent on not letting any feeling slip past his forced smile.

He was a Malfoy after all, and that meant pushing his feelings far down while keeping his chin raised high. “I’ve spent years at Hogwarts already, one more won’t make much of a difference.” He told her as she hugged him goodbye.

“Send me an owl whenever you have time, dear.” The continuous look of trepidation in her eyes only gave way for a foreboding feeling of what’s to come to someone who’s carrying the mark of a former death-eater.

“I will.” Draco gave her a tight smile before boarding the Hogwarts Express.

***

The train was already crowded with people trying to find compartments that were empty. Draco felt luck being on his side as he had boarded the train right beside an unoccupied compartment. He made his way inside, putting his luggage away before settling down with a book. He hoped he wouldn’t have to meet any of his former classmates before arrival.

“Thank God! I thought all of the compartments were occupied already!” Draco looked up from his book only to find none other than Pansy Parkinson standing in the entry with Blaise Zabini trailing behind her. “It’s good to see you!” She beamed at him.

“Good seeing you too.” Draco said, feeling a hint of relief at knowing his friends would be accompanying him back to Hogwarts. He hadn’t been too sure whether or not any of the former Slytherins would return.

Pansy sat down opposite of Draco while Blaise took the spot next to him. “I’m glad you decided to come back for this year.” Pansy quietly said with a faint smile on her lips. Draco couldn’t help but feel like there was a hint of pity in her eyes. Draco gave her a sharp nod before looking away. Pity was not something he wanted directed his way.

They sat in silence for a moment until the train started speeding up and they were on their way to a final year at Hogwarts.

Pansy shifted a bit indicating that she clearly had something to say but couldn’t quite figure out how to go about it. Finally, she decided to speak. “How… If you don’t mind me asking… How did the trials go?” Her voice was hushed as if she feared that anyone could be listening through the solid walls separating them from the rest of the students.

Draco broke his attention away from his book once more and gazed at her. She looked fairly uncomfortable asking him the question, but it seemed like curiosity had gotten the better of her. “Better than expected.” Draco shifted a bit, glancing between Pansy and Blaise as he realised Blaise was now attentively watching him as well.

“Both mother and I had to stay put in the manor for a few months before we were allowed out. Our wands have been replaced, but they know of my return to Hogwarts, so I’m allowed to use it as usual when it comes to schoolwork.” Draco withdrew the wand from his pocket handing it to Blaise as he looked it over. “Father did not fare as well as we did.” Blaise looked up from the wand at once, a frown plastered across his face. “It was no surprise though.” Draco shrugged, knowing full well that even if Potter had thrown himself on the ground begging, the judges would not lessen the sentence given to his father. Nor did he deserve anything less, Draco thought to himself.

“I’m sorry we couldn’t be there.” Blaise said, handing the wand back to Draco.

“Don’t be. They didn’t allow anyone else in for the hearings anyway.” Draco pocketed the wand.

“Still… We’re sorry…” Pansy said, she had a grim look on her face. He knew full well how much Pansy and Blaise cared for him. They were his best friends and they had tried to help him, tried to find a way to get him out of it all. However, it had been to no use. He had been too far gone at that point. The only thing that got him through it at the end was the chacne of saving his mother and his desperate hope that Potter would claw his way through it all and come out victorious.

Draco gave her and Blaise a small smile as he muttered “Thank you.” The rest of the trip was fairly quiet between them, although the tension seemed less dense. Everyone seemed to be in need of some peace and quiet before facing Hogwarts once more.

Draco leaned back, closing his eyes. His book had been abandoned along the way and now he just felt drained and in need of some sleep. Yet, he could not force away the thoughts that had started occupying his mind from the previous conversation.

The trials had been exhausting, and quite frankly, terrifying. Draco had first sat through the verdict of his father where no mercy was given. He had been sent to Azkaban on a life sentence. Draco had felt his hands shake as he stood next to his mother waiting for the final verdict that would decide the rest of his life. He had clasped them together tightly trying to make less notice of how dreadfully frightened he truly felt at that moment. His mother had become thin from worry throughout the war, and her few attempts at giving him a reassuring smile before the verdict had never quite succeeded in reaching her eyes. The thought of spending the rest of his life in Azkaban had kept him awake the whole time up until the day of their judging. It seemed like his mother hadn’t fared better herself.

The trials were long and took an eternity to get through. It wasn’t surprising as there were a vast number of you-know-who’s followers who had been captured and put up for trial. When it was Draco and his mother’s turn, something rather unexpected had occurred. Before the judges could come to a final conclusion, a last witness was brought forth. The doors had opened and in strode the wonder boy. Draco could do nothing less than stare wide-eyed as Potter started talking. To be fair, Draco hadn’t in his wildest dreams expected Potter of all to jump in and defend both Draco and his mother. The judges all seemed to rely profoundly on Potter’s statement and it only took a short discussion before the judgment was given. Both Draco and his mother were given mercy. No, more than that. They only got a few months of house arrest as well as having their wands confiscated. They had been given replacements that would notify the Auror department the minute either of them performed spells that could imply anything suspicious. It was required to have the wands for at least a year before they could apply for permittance to have their original wands returned to them.

Draco had stood there in silence for what felt like an eternity, while his mother hugged him sobbing uncontrollably. He had only shared a quick glance with Potter before Potter gave him a short nod and then turned to leave. Draco couldn’t tell whether or not Potter’s expression was filled with pity or with dislike, all he did know though, was that he felt relieved. Not just relieved, he felt like he could break down right there and then joining his mother in crying their eyes out, yet the Malfoy in him would not allow for anyone to see him like that. He patted his mother’s back as he watched Potter leave the room followed by a crowd of people who had lost all interest in the case and was now preoccupied with getting a signature or even just a glance directed towards them from the chosen one. It seemed that Potter was still true to his character of always having that overwhelming desire to save every soul he could find. It didn’t feel good to owe his whole future to Potter of all people, but he already owed him a fair share of lifetimes, what did it matter to owe one more?

***

It was strange being back at Hogwarts after all that had happened. The castle had already been fully restored showing no indication of having been a key structure in one of the biggest wars in wizarding history.

“All yer first years, follow me!” Hagrid shouted over the crowd of students. Draco saw a bunch of tiny students tripping on their cloaks as they hurried over to the boats. It made him remember the first time he had been to Hogwarts. The boat ride towards the castle had been exciting and scary at the same time. He had been filled with awe and confidence as he was still too young to know what was to come.

“8th years, gather around!” Draco felt Pansy tug at his sleeve as they heard McGonagall’s voice.

Together with the rest of the eight years, Draco stood in-between his two friends waiting for the headmistress to speak.

“Welcome back all of you.” McGonagall started as she quickly looked around at the few students that had decided to return for the additional year. Draco couldn’t help but look to the ground as he felt her gaze on him. “As you all know, this year is optional, but it will allow you to get your N.E.W.T.s. Now, there will be some changes to the way things work when it comes to all of you. There will be no house separation and you will be placed in a shared common room in one of the towers.” Gasps were heard here and there from a few of the students.

“Not only that, but in order to create a better unity between you all, each dorm room will be shared between two people from different houses.” As McGonagall said this, hushed groans could be heard. “You will not be given a curfew as I expect you are all grown up enough to be held accountable for your own actions. There will be a head of house though, which will help if any issues arise.” Everyone went silent again as McGonagall’s strict voice quieted the disagreement uttered by some of the students.

“Once you’re back at Hogwarts you’ll be sorted into rooms before the opening ceremony. Try not to be late as house points will still be given or taken depending on your behaviour, you all will as a united house, have the opportunity to win the end of year reward as well.”

Draco wondered if this arrangement was made in a desperate attempt of making a mixed group of friends and enemies try to hate each other a little less. The thought was quickly interrupted as he was dragged along by Blaise and Pansy.

***

The castle was still grand as ever. Being up close to it made something inside Draco’s stomach turn. Although the structure itself was rebuilt to the finest details, it couldn’t hide the scars that still lingered in the memories of what had happened there.

They all shuffled up the stairs to the eastern tower and gathered in what would now be their united common room. As all the eight years were now distanced from the rest of the students, Draco could feel eyes turning his way. Had he been anything less than a Malfoy he would’ve winced at the hostility that was blatantly thrown his way from a few of them. Yet, he kept his chin up and looked straight ahead. He knew many of them blamed him for various things that had happened during the war. Perhaps the biggest part of it was the blame of believing he had murdered Dumbledore. He was one of the few people who knew it wasn’t true, but he was aware of the fact that no one seemed interested in hearing his side of the story. In their eyes he was a death-eater and a murderer.

“Alright then. I will say your names and appoint you a number. This will be your room for the entirety of the year, and you will not have the opportunity to change rooms. Is that clear?” McGonagall looked around the room as a few people nodded here and there while others were grumbling. “Patil, number 5. Granger 7.” McGonagall started, and Draco felt a lump start to form in his throat at the thought of who he might end up sharing a room with.

There were a few that he knew would take deep offense at sharing a room with him, and a couple that he knew would probably make life a living hell for him. Finnigan might not be the worst as he wouldn’t intentionally try to kill him, Draco thought. However, his ability to blow things up could definitely end with him inflicting something horrible upon Draco. Macmillan was also someone Draco couldn’t help but fear share a room with. He had not cared to try and hide his resentment towards Draco from the moment they stepped off the train and he knew Finch-Fletchley felt the same. Weasley would also be a nightmare to room with.

It wasn’t long until Draco realised that the number of people that he could get along with were scarce. The only person he knew would be safe to room with was Blaise, which, with the new rule would be impossible. 

“Malfoy” Draco felt a shiver surge through him at the mention of his name. This year was going to be hell, he thought. “Room 2.” McGonagall said and a few murmurs were heard around the room.

“Oh boy…” Pansy muttered as she nervously tucked a loose strand behind her ear. “Are you going to be alright?” She whispered to him. “Huh?” Draco furrowed his brows at her, not having paid much attention until his name was called. He had been too lost in thoughts.

“Of all people… It had to be Potter.”

Draco stood there stunned for a second. He first thought Pansy was playing a cruel joke at him, saying he and Potter had been roomed together. But the concern that was plastered on her face made it highly unlikely for it to be a prank.

“No…” Draco whispered feeling his chest clench tight. He did not want to share a room with Potter. No way. He’d take the danger of Macmillan over Potter any day.

***

“Do you mind if I take the right side?” Potter asked as they had been hushed along by McGonagall telling them, once more, not to be late for the opening ceremony. 

“It’s fine.” Draco said curtly, still trying to process the dreadful thought of sharing a room with none other than Potter.

They both packed out their things in silence. It was an understatement to say it was awkward between them. Draco tried to pay it no attention and got his things sorted before heading down to the common room where Blaise and Pansy were waiting for him.

***

As they were pacing along towards the great hall Pansy turned to Draco. “Are you gonna be fine? You know… sharing a room with Potter?” Draco noted how Pansy had been keeping a respectful tone as much as possible whenever she was around Potter or even just talking about him. It had almost ruined her when she had stood up and shouted at everyone about joining you-know-who during the start of the war. She had been lucky that Potter hadn’t placed her into the group of traitors that Draco had already been part of. And now it seemed like she was adamantly making sure to be careful with whatever she said relating to Potter.

“It’s fine… I’ll live.” Draco said back, reasoning with himself that Potter had already gone through the trouble of keeping him out of Azkaban. It would be a bit farfetched to think he’d bother with him after all that. Although he would probably be able to do whatever he wanted without anyone questioning him, Draco thought. It was highly likely that Potter could’ve gotten away with murdering him in broad daylight if he so wished. Luckily for Draco, he knew Potter was not evil. That much was certain, so perhaps he could survive this year even under the current circumstances. 

***

The opening ceremony had not changed much since the time Draco was a first year filled with pride and self-assurance as he was sorted into the house of Slytherin. The only thing that seemed different after the war was the hesitance the older students showed when the first student to be called for the sorting was deemed a Slytherin. As the teachers realised, a fierce clapping sound was heard from the head table, making for a quick recovery.

“Welcome new students at Hogwarts, and welcome back to all old students!” McGonagall’s welcome speech boomed over the great hall as she continued on to matters regarding the older years. “This year will include an added 8th year in order to allow former students a chance to take their N.E.W.T.s. Most classes will be held together with the 7th year.” It was easy to notice how quite a few new and old students turned their heads towards the Gryffindor table in order to see if the saviour of the wizarding world was among the returning students.

If Potter had been famous before the war, it was nothing compared to his popularity now. All eyes would probably be on him throughout the year and mistakes would be easily spotted. Draco supposed it reminded him slightly of his own situation growing up at the manor. However, the risk of punishment seemed non-existent when it came to Potter. The guy had always been exceptionally good at getting into trouble and never seemed too bothered about it.

The feast began as food started piling up on the extensive tables set in front of them. Having a meal at Hogwarts was something Draco never believed he would experience again, but here he was.

***

“I’m beat! I don’t remember the speech ever being that long.” Pansy complained as they were heading back to the common room.

“Well, it was never McGonagall who used to hold the speeches before anyway, she must’ve made some changes to it.” Blaise shrugged. Draco could feel himself tense at the conversation steering towards the headmistress. It only reminded him of Dumbledore and the moment he had watched him die.

“It’s strange, isn’t it? Having McGonagall as headmistress.” Pansy said in a low voice. Draco only gave her a nod in return, not wanting to breach the subject any further.

“Who are you two roomed with by the way?” Draco asked, trying to steer the conversation over to something else.

“I’m with Abbott” Pansy said. “She’s alright, I guess. I’m gonna try and see if I can get closer to her. Would be nice since I’m the only girl from Slytherin who have returned.” She added forlornly.

“I’m with Longbottom. He still seems to hold a grudge against most people from Slytherin, so I’m not sure if any friendship is gonna bloom there, but at least he’s not someone who would easily harm anyone else.” Blaise said dryly.

“It’s not too bad though.” Draco noted. Pansy gave him a side glance as she spoke. “Same with Potter. You two might not have the best relationship, but at least he doesn’t seem hell bent on some form of revenge or anything.”

“Yeah, and you could’ve been paired with Weasley.” Blaise snorted.

“I admit that option would’ve been worse. He has shown multiple times to be the type of person who acts before he thinks.” Draco mocked it felt nice to have a chat that felt like old days again.

***

The common room was rather quiet as only a few other 8th years were seen loitering around getting ready for bed. Everyone seemed tired from the journey and not in the mood for staying up late.

“There’s Abbott! I’m gonna try make at least one successful attempt at friendly conversation before heading to bed.” Pansy said as she gave them a tight smile before making her way over to the blonde girl currently sat reading a book.

Blaise mumbled something about wanting to get some rest before the start of lectures and Draco thought he would do the same.

Opening the door to the shared room revealed that it was empty. “Good.” Draco muttered to himself as he figured he might be able to get into bed before Potter got back.

First though, he knew he had to write a letter to his mother. She looked far too concerned as he boarded the train, and he knew she would be worried sick at this point. He got out a quill and parchment and started writing. ‘Dear Mother, I have arrived at Hogwarts and everything is well. I will start lectures tomorrow and I assume the lectures and homework will create a busy schedule making the first semester pass by swiftly. I hope you are well and that you don’t feel too lonely. Until next time. Signed your son, Draco.’

Draco rolled the parchment together and tied it neatly before summoning his owl to the window. It was a strange feeling to suddenly be in a dorm so high up compared to the dungeons. At least the owls had easy access here. The owl waited patiently as he tied the letter to its leg before flying off into the crimson sky.

Draco got himself ready and when he climbed into bed, Potter had still not turned in for the night. With a flick of his wand the curtains of his bed closed, and he lay down trying to make himself comfortable. As he almost dozed off, he remembered something important he had almost forgotten about. He grabbed his wand and put a silencing charm on his bed. It was bad enough that he had to share a room with Potter, but he wasn’t about to let him hear as he woke up from a nightmare screaming.

***

He woke up with a jerk, the memories of the war slowly dissipating as he steadied his breath. He glanced through the curtain over at the bed next to him, finding that the curtains had been drawn shut indicating that Potter must’ve come back after he had fallen asleep.

Draco tried making as little noise as possible as he got ready for breakfast. He had the feeling that interacting with Potter would not be the best way to start his first day back at Hogwarts.

***

The great hall was slowly filling up as yawning students entered one after another. Draco was already positioned in-between his two friends who were chatting away about the new defense against the dark arts teacher. “I haven’t heard of her before, but hopefully it’ll be exciting.” Pansy said as she took a big bite of her sandwich.

“Her name… What was it?” Blaise squinted his eyes as he tried to remember the new teachers’ introductions the day before. “Professor Evergreen!” Pansy finally said after a minute of thinking.

“What do you think, Draco? Seems like there’s a new professor for potions as well. It’s gonna be interesting to see how they all teach.”

“Hopefully they won’t drown us in homework from the start.” Draco said answering Pansy’s question as he picked at his toast. His appetite hadn’t recovered since the time the manor had been filled with death-eaters and you-know-who for what felt like an eternity. He found it to be disgraceful as he had become thinner and thinner each day, which had added more worry to his mother. Yet, he couldn’t help it. The endless nightmares had kept him awake at the manor long after the trials, and it appeared they had followed him back to Hogwarts as well.

“I doubt it.” Blaise said, sipping on a cup of tea.

***

Two days in and the homework was stacking up at a rapid pace. The faint trace of hope that the professors would go easy on them had been shattered brutally. 

“I’m gonna die before I manage to get this transfiguration paper done!” Pansy whined loudly, earning them a shush from the librarian. 

“You might want to focus a bit on the potion homework as well before you intend to die. It’s due sooner.” Blaise said in a low voice without looking up from his potion book.

Pansy scowled at him before grabbing her own potion book as well. She sighed before setting her eyes at Draco like he was the next prey. “Hey there pretty boy, are you in for a trade?” Draco knew that tone she was using, and it usually meant something bad coming his way.

“Flattery won’t get you anywhere.” Draco sighed for a moment before accepting to take the bait. “What do you have in mind?” He knew full well how persistent Pansy could be whenever she got in that particular mood.

“If you give me a hand with my potion homework, I’ll do your next transfiguration paper.” Pansy looked hopeful while trying to keep an air of business.

“You’re already dying from the first transfiguration paper; I’m not really seeing how you’re going to be of much help.” Draco sighed, but put down his transfiguration paper in order to help Pansy anyway. He was already done with his potion paper and he knew Pansy wouldn’t stop whining until she got hers done.

“If you’re helping her, then please let me in on it too.” Blaise said as he scurried closer to the other two.

***

Potion class was one of the few classes where Draco felt like he had a bit of control over what was going on. He had always liked potion and it was something he had been naturally good at since the start.

Positioned at the back of the class, Draco listened as the new Professor named Shrew talked rapidly, seemingly not in need of air between his sentences.

“Page 354, we will look at how to brew a wit-sharpening potion.” Professor Shrew said while pacing back and forth in front of the class.

“Go grab the ingredients needed and then start reading the instructions. Call out if you need help.” The students started gathering at the small room lined up with shelf’s full of ingredients. Draco waited for a bit before heading over, having felt the hostility of quite a few students, he thought it best to be a bit careful whenever he could.

Pansy sighed, already showing signs of defeat before starting. As they walked over, Draco saw Abbott join in from the side giving Pansy a supportive smile and handing her one of the ingredients she was gathering. Pansy had apparently managed to form a bit of friendship with the Hufflepuff already. 

As Draco and Pansy got back with their ingredients, they heard Shrew’s voice boom out facts about the potion. “It enhances the clarity of thought of the drinker.” At that, Draco heard Macmillan hiss loudly from the middle of the classroom. “Should’ve taken some of this before you made a decision to become a death-eater, Malfoy. Probably wouldn’t have helped though.”

“What a prat…” Pansy whispered, scowling at Macmillan. Draco just kept his eyes locked on the ingredient he was slicing up in front of him. It wasn’t the first time he got comments thrown after him and he knew better than to retaliate to every single one of them.

“Very good! This is the sort of potion skills I expect from all of you.” Shrew said, studying Granger’s work. Draco rolled his eyes. Granger obviously wasn’t gonna let anything stop her from rising to the top of every damn class she attended.

“Good, good.” Shrew said as he examined Draco’s work as well. Draco didn’t care to feel offended at the lack of interest from his professor. He had felt the look of displeasure from the first lecture when his name was mentioned. It wasn’t something he could run from.

“Oh my! That’s very interesting!” Shrew quickly covered up his shock before adding “A hint of ginger roots would’ve made it perfect!” He said as he studied the total chaos that was erupting from Potter’s cauldron.

Potter had a sheepish grin on his face there he stood between a disgruntled Granger and an amused Weasley. Draco scoffed silently. He was well aware that the potion was a complete failure and would need several changes for it to even remotely resemble the potion in question. Shrew seemed too infatuated with the glorious saviour to see the many faults in front of him.

Draco scowled at Potter and before he had time to avert his gaze, Potter caught it. The look on his face didn’t indicate any sort of contempt, if anything it only held a hint of interest. It was weird to see Potter behaving with so much calmness. When they were younger, he would usually return the scowl and they would easily get into fights left and right.

The Potter that he had seen so far was more composed and didn’t seem to take much notice whenever Draco gave him a disdainful look as they passed each other. Draco knew he should be careful with how he behaved now that the war was over, he had chosen a side although with not much of an option, and he would have to live by that decision for the rest of his life. Trying to piss of Potter wasn’t gonna help his stay at Hogwarts or his future. However, the lack of animosity between them, mainly from Potter’s side, made everything seem too unnatural for Draco. He needed something that had been normal before everything changed or he would surely loose it sooner or later.

“Alright class, after handing in the papers from last time you’ll be dismissed!” Shrew said, and everyone started cleaning their desks and handing in the homework.

***

The rest of the week went by slowly, being overloaded with homework and having to cram for their N.E.W.T.s. everyone seemed miserable.

“I’ll just go to sleep now and then worry about it all tomorrow instead” Blaise said in an exasperated voice as he rose from the couch grumbling and heading to his room.

Draco muttered a good night before resuming to his homework. Half an hour had gone by when Pansy showed up. “You’re up late.” She said as she sat down in the sofa next to him, handing him a cup of hot chocolate.

Draco put his paper down as he accepted the warm drink. “Less people around at this time.” He said quietly.

Almost everyone was asleep and only Granger and Longbottom was still present in the common room. Draco had made a note of position himself at the furthest distance from Potter and his group whenever he spent time in the common room.

“So… How are you holding up?” Pansy studied him intently as she asked. Draco knew that she was worried about him. She had been crying endlessly when she got to know that Draco would have to go through trials for his role in the war.

“I’m fine. No need to worry.” Draco said back keeping a neutral look on his face.

“You say that, but…” Pansy sighed a bit, knowing just how stubborn Draco could be at times. “I am worried. Your mother told me you didn’t sleep much before school started. She said it was nightmares.” Draco glared at her as her voice was far too loud when speaking about something like this.

“I sleep fine. And exactly when did you and my mother become such good friends?” Draco felt a hint of betrayed from his mother for having told Pansy about his difficulties after the war.

“Please don’t be mad at her! She only worries, and since you haven’t been returning her letters lately, she asked me how things were going. She doesn’t want to tell you, but I think she is a bit lonely at the manor by herself.” Pansy said in a much lower voice now.

“I’ve been busy as of late.” Draco had received a fair share of letters from his mother, but when she had returned to the topic of visiting his father in Azkaban, he hadn’t been able to send her a letter back. She knew how he felt about his father, and she should’ve known better than to ask him about it. “She should rather find a hobby instead of starting to talk about my private life to just about anyone.” Draco said bitterly.

“Don’t say that…” Pansy winced. “She just wants to make sure you’re doing fine. And I’m _not_ just anybody. I’m your friend, and honestly I think it would help to talk about it, you know.” Pansy said, hesitantly squeezing his hand.

Draco sighed. He loved his mother, but it had been difficult to not blame both of his parents for having led him down a path that he could never properly recover from. He knew his mother never wanted it for him, but she hadn’t been able to take Draco and leave his father either before it all went to hell.

“I know… And I’m thankful that you want to help, but I’m fine, I promise. Everyone’s been through a ton of shit these last few years, and everyone is dealing with it.” Draco said, taking a long sip of his hot chocolate, signalling the end of the converesation.

“Alright… I’ll let it go for now. But please tell me if you need to talk to anyone.” Pansy said with a small smile that tried to relate some kind of understanding to his situation. Draco returned the smile, knowing full well that his problems would stay with him alone.

***

Draco shot up in his bed. He was breathing harshly as he felt sweat covering his body, making his hair stick to the back of his neck. He closed his eyes for a moment as he tried to steady his breathing.

Once he opened his eyes again, he realised he had been grasping at his arm where the mark was. He withdrew his hand and sighed. The nightmares hadn’t decreased at all. Every night he woke up in a cold sweat screaming or shaking violently.

‘It couldn’t go on like this’ Draco thought to himself. He wouldn’t be able to pass any of the classes, much less his N.E.W.T.s. if he never got more than a few hours of sleep. The lack of sleep had resulted in his appetite being as poor as it was, making it even harder to function as a normal human being.

Draco pulled out one of the potion books he had stored on his bedside table. He cast a charm that made the letters of the book shine bright in the darkness allowing him to read the content of the book.

“There must be something I could do” Draco mumbled to himself, feeling desperate to find any sort of solution that might help him sleep without the boundless nightmares.


	2. Potion Brewing

Draco felt himself having trouble sitting still as Professor Shrew was pacing back and forth not stopping his ranting about potion history until Granger reached her hand in the air asking about the potion they were going to brew. For once Granger hadn’t been a total bother as she had stopped the frantic rant of the professor, allowing for the lecture to continue on to the practical part.

“Everyone! Go grab the necessary ingredients and start brewing.” Professor Shrew said.

Draco waited for a bit longer this time before going over to the ingredient room. He felt his nerves getting a hold of him as he looked around at the various ingredients stacked neatly in each shelf. He started picking out what he needed, while keeping an eye out for someone watching him.

No one was particularly focusing on him at the moment, as a few students had crowded around Potter as he had entered a second after Draco.

‘Perfect’ Draco thought, as he swiftly got hold of a particular vial and stored it in his pocket. He continued browsing the last ingredients making sure to keep a composed look on his face before going back.

It wasn’t ideal, Draco thought as he sat on his bed inspecting the small vial filled with a purple liquid. However, it was necessary.

He had spent many sleepless nights now trying to figure out a potion that could help him get rid of the nightmares. An old book from the library had been his best shot as it described a potion that could potentially help with just that.

“I still need this one and…” Draco skimmed through the page once more, memorizing what he still needed in order to make the potion.

Draco felt himself jump as Potter opened the door hastily and strode over to his side of the room.

Draco stuffed the book and vial aside while masking his surprise and calming his heartbeat.

It did not seem like Potter had noticed anything amiss as he dug through his cupboard and fished out what Draco assumed to be a charms homework paper.

“As forgetful as ever, are we? You’re lucky to have saved the world, or your only chance at passing the exams would have been to start over from first year.” Draco said with a sneer before he could stop himself. It wasn’t the time to start a quarrel, but just seeing Potter’s face was annoying, and having felt his heart jump out of his chest as Potter barged in only soured his mood further. It just felt easier to let the frustration out on him.

Potter turned to look at him. His eyes scrutinizing him for a moment as it looked like he was about to say something before changing his mind. “I’m not _that_ awful in any of the classes that it would warrant a retake, you know.”

“Your potion work is shite.” Draco grumbled back, as he pretended to read through his own homework. 

Potter just laughed loudly. Draco’s looked up his eyes widening for a second before he could manage to cover up his shock at the unexpected reaction. The laugh coming from Potter didn’t hold any animosity or anger. It was just a pure, joyful laugh. Before Draco had a chance to recover and another word could be uttered Potter had left the room.

Certainly, something must be wrong with that head of his, Draco thought. Perhaps the war had been a greater burden on him than anyone really understood, and now the idiot had gone mad because of it.

Satisfied with his deduction, Draco went back to reading the potion book.

***

“When it comes to defending yourself against various charms and curses you have to be able to produce a stable and strong shield, you also have to be quick, as being a second late in reacting could mean the end of you.” Professor Evergreen said as she studied the students in front of her.

“Team up with the one you share a room with and take turns hexing and defending.”

‘Great!’ Draco thought as Potter walked towards him.

“You want to start hexing or defending?” Potter asked, while pulling his wands from under his cloak.

“Hexing you would presumably be the most satisfying option.” Draco taunted. He was too tired to have any interaction with Potter much less cast spells at him or try to defend against the ones coming his way, but he couldn’t show it. He wouldn’t allow himself to show any weakness.

“It’s charming that you think you’ve got a chance at hitting me.” Potter seemed to pay no attention to the taunting and was just keeping a relaxed posture as he watched Draco. 

At this point Draco had found himself struggling with masking the darkness that had started forming under his eyes. The lack of sleep and appetite had thrown him into some sort of delirious state of mind.

He quickly threw a hex Potter’s way without warning him. It had little effect though, as Potter had always been quick with his spell work. Draco threw a few more, realising that the shield Potter had put up was not going to bend to a few minor hexes. That’s what happens when you’ve had a hoard of death-eaters attacking you with unforgivable curses left and right. 

However, although begrudgingly, Draco couldn’t get himself to throw the most advanced hexes. His energy level was just too low, and he could feel that his magic was weaker than usual.

After a few more tries, the shield still stood tall and strong not allowing any hex to pass by it. Draco sighed, motioning for them to switch.

“You ready?” Potter said, lifting his wand slightly.

“You think I’m so weak that it would warrant a bloody warning before-” Draco was cut short by the hex throwing him off his feet. He groaned as he hit the floor, feeling like his pride had taken most of the damage. That bloody Potter and his freakishly fast reflexes, Draco thought bitterly.

“Well, perhaps I just taunted you in order to avert your attention. I’d say it can be quite helpful in succeeding an attack.” Potter was not keeping his grin to himself as he walked over to Draco.

“Especially if your opponent has too much pride.” Potter reached out his hand, but Draco only scowled at it before getting back on his feet, brushing off the non-existing dirt on his cloak. He dismissed the notion of dizziness that was now present.   
  
“Are you okay?” Draco felt himself tense for a second, he hadn’t noticed Potter scrutinizing him, and now it was too late. Potter was standing close enough to see the worn-out look on his face, which Pansy had been nagging him about for days now.

“Still not able to stop yourself from _desperately_ wanting to save everyone, huh?” Draco jeered, knowing he was stepping close to one of the many landmines that was wired into Potter.

“That’s not it.” Potter had visibly tensed at Draco’s words, confirming Draco’s long suspicion that Potter was still not able to accept having lost people in the war. “You just look… sick… or exhausted.”

Draco felt himself grow more annoyed by the minute as Potter was still showing concern, even when he had purposely hit a nerve to avoid the subject at hand.

“How nice of you to point out. Especially when you look no better than me.” Draco scoffed, adding “The endless homework isn’t exactly helping.” He figured the reason would be good enough to make Potter back off, and it was.

Potter frowned at him for a second before nodding and stepping back. Draco managed to deflect the next few hexes with his shield, but still he couldn’t help but notice that the hexes sent his way was barely average compared to the first hex. Potter was going easy on him.

“Alright everyone, that’s it for today. I do expect you all to reflect on your performance and write three pages on it for next class. Dismissed.” Everyone seemed to whine in unison at the homework that seemingly never stopped increasing. 

***

The other ingredients had been easy enough to snatch whenever he went to browse the shelfs during potion classes. It was only one more that had to be acquired before he could start brewing it.

The class was fairly boring as they were going through previous potions they had learned during their earlier years at Hogwarts. Professor Shrew seemed exceptionally resilient today as he seemed to have mastered the technique of not needing to breath between his sentences at all.

“Gather the ingredients needed for any of the potions we’ve discussed and brew it before the end of class.” Shrew said as he finally decided to sit down and look through the previous homework, they had handed in.

Draco glanced quickly at the shelf in the ingredient room. He only needed one more vial for the potion.

He was just about to reach into the small basket that separated several vials that was stored in a range of colours.

“Where is the fluxweed at?” Startled Draco hastily snatched one of the vials and showed it into his pocket before eyeing the person next to him. 

“Are you blind?” Draco harshly sneered, feeling the adrenaline pump through him, making him sound more defensive that he had intended.

He gazed at Potter who were noticeably not looking at the shelf. Instead he was scanning Draco’s face for God knows what, and Draco felt his stomach turn at the thought of being caught red handed. The vial he had snatched wasn’t part of any of the ingredients, and frankly Draco couldn’t know for sure whether or not Potter had paid enough attention to notice that.

Potter’s scrutinizing look turned into a frown after a moment. “With my glasses on? No, not really.” Draco rolled his eyes, before pointing to the shelf. “You’re looking at it, idiot.” Draco felt a big relief wash over him as he figured Potter must’ve missed the event all together.

Potter made a surprised “Oh!” as he followed Draco’s pointing and found the ingredient placed neatly in front of him.

Before any more conversation could be held Draco hurried back to his desk. He didn’t want to take the chance of generating more suspicion towards himself.

***

Two more days went by before Draco could start brewing the potion. He had to ensure that Potter would be occupied for a substantial amount of time before he could do anything.

It wouldn’t be an ideal scenario to have Potter walk in on him brewing a potion illegally in their shared bedroom. The good doer would probably run of at first chance to tell on him.

Draco carefully read the instructions and added a few drops of the first vial into a small cauldron before adding the crushed berries, ginger, a few other ingredients and then finally the last vial which was generously poured in. It took a moment before the concoction started changing colour as he stirred it. The book was old and didn’t say much more than the fact that the colour would change once it was ready. It didn’t specify which colour would be shown, but Draco figured it was right considering he had followed the recipe to point. He also felt out of options, so he decided it was better to chance it on a potion that might work.

“Alright.” Draco mumbled to himself as he stretched his arms above his head, he felt stiff after having stirred the potion for a prolonged time. He then used his wand to carefully extract the liquid and add it into an empty vial, making sure it was shut properly.

He had just put the potion book aside and was reaching for the vial to put it away as well, when Potter walked into the room. He scrambled to put it in the drawer in his nightstand. If Potter had noticed something amiss, he did not show it. Draco felt his pulse steady a bit as he got hold of himself, pretending like he was sorting through his homework. He hadn’t expected Potter to be back already, and he was just relieved that he had managed to finish the potion before Potter entered the room.

The potion book had said to only inhale it right before going to bed. Draco gathered his stuff and went to the bathroom to get himself ready for sleep.

Perhaps this time he would finally be able to sleep properly without the hauntings of his past.

***

As Draco entered the room again, he saw that Potter was soundly asleep already. He had only bothered to draw the bed curtains the first few days before he deemed it too troublesome. This regrettably led to Draco seeing his messy bed hair every single morning. Fair enough, Potter wasn’t an ugly guy, but there had to be limits to how untidy someone’s hair could be.

As Draco climbed into bed, he reached out and opened the drawer containing the vial. With a quick glace in Potter’s direction making sure he was sleeping; Draco unscrewed the lid and gave it a good sniff.

There was no particular smell, and he didn’t feel anything acutely different after inhaling it. Perhaps he felt a bit… warmer? However, Draco couldn’t be sure if that was just his own wishful thinking that the potion had worked.

‘I’ll know when I wake up.’ Draco thought to himself as he hid the potion again and leaned his head back down on his pillow. He slowly dozed off, hoping that the potion would soon start to take its effect on him.


	3. The effects of mistakes

Draco feels himself stumbling and almost falling before managing to somehow regain his balance. He is breathing heavily, and the adrenaline is overwhelming.

He can hear explosions and screaming around him, and he realises where he is. The battle at Hogwarts. He runs through the halls seeing other people, students he realises, that are fighting for their lives.

Then it changes. Draco feels himself wanting to scream as he sees Voldemort standing in front of him. But he doesn’t scream, instead he lifts his wand up at the same time as Voldemort raises his. The surge of power as magic clash with magic makes it difficult to stand upright. They’re both trying to overpower the other. He turns just in time to see the last horcrux being destroyed, and as Draco lifts his wand again, he succeeds in overpowering Voldemort. He snatches his wand into his own hand and watches as Voldemort starts to dissolve into nothingness. He can finally breathe again. However, as he stands there in the wake of the battle, he takes in the view of some of his fellow students who had bravely fought yet hadn’t made it through. The guilt washed over him. He didn’t understand why, but he felt like it was all his fault. He should’ve saved them.

Draco shot up, breathing hard as he took in the nightmare he had just witnessed. ‘The hell?’ he muttered to himself as he realised that the nightmare wasn’t like his usual ones. It didn’t make any sense. The nightmares were there, but they weren’t… his?

Draco quickly glanced over to check if Potter had awoken from the commotion. He blinked twice as he looked straight into a wall.

Feeling disoriented he slowly turned around and saw a bed to his left, enclosed by the bed curtains. It was then that he realised his own curtains were open.

Draco shakingly got out of bed, it was difficult to see in the dim light that struggled to shine through the window draperies.

Being careful not to make too much noise, he slowly opened the curtains to the bed.

Draco yelped loudly as he looked down at the sleeping figure in front of him. There was no mistaking it. He was looking at his own face, sleeping with a small frown. 

“What the bloody hell?” Draco tried to take in the event that was unfolding in front of him. What had happened? Why the hell was he currently watching himself sleep? Was he still alive?

It dawned on him as he hurried over to the mirror on the closet door, hoping to be wrong about his deduction. “This can’t be happening!” He felt horrified as he was met with green eyes and what could only be described as a bird’s nest of black hair sticking out everywhere on his head.

He paced back and forth for a moment trying to figure out just what exactly had happened. Was it a spell? Had someone broken into their room during the night and hexed them? He figured it could be possible considering how many hated him, but why would anyone want to do something like that towards Potter? He was still viewed as a hero by most people, especially the students at Hogwarts. 

“Hey, wake up Potter!” Draco was astounded at how easily Potter managed to sleep through the ruckus he was making.

“Wake up now, or I’ll hex you!” Draco hissed, as he shook Potter’s shoulders, or his own shoulders that was.

Potter grunted as he barely opened his eyes, annoyance was dripping from his voice as he spoke. “What?”.

“What the fuck have you done?!” Draco felt himself loudly whisper at this point.

“Huh?” Potter rubbed his eyes as he sat up, still having trouble getting rid of his drowsiness.

“Look at me!” Draco hissed back, and as Potter turned, he just stared at him for a minute in complete silence. 

“Am I dreaming?” Potter asked confused, obviously trying to take in the sight in front of him.

Staring up at yourself first thing in the morning wasn’t exactly something anyone would be able to handle with ease.

“No, you prat! It’s me Malfoy!” Potter frowned, obviously not believing him. “Riiiiight….” He sighed as he lay back down again and turned away from Draco.

“The nerve!” Draco said, as he smacked Potter over the head, regretting it a second later as he realised it was his own body that he was putting through the rough treatment. However, it had done the trick.

“Ouch! What the hell??” Potter jolted up, his hands on his head as he rubbed the sore spot.

“Potter! It’s me Malfoy. You’re in my damn body for Merlin’s sake!” Potter still seemed suspicious, but a little more awake after the hit, which made him snap out of the ‘it’s all a dream’ thought process.

“Hold on…” Potter stumbled out of the bed, and as he stood in front of the mirror, he seemed to have finally woken up properly.

“What the fuck!?” He looked just as horrified as Draco had at the realisation.

“You _must_ know what’s going on!” Draco barked out as he started looking around the room trying to find something that could give some sort of explanation.

“How the hell should I know?!” Potter was obviously freaking out as much as Draco at this point and they both just glared at each other for a second, trying to discern if the other knew more than they let on.

***

“Maybe someone cast a spell on us?” Potter was pacing back and forth in their room. They had both decided to miss breakfast after Draco said he would rather die than have to try and act nice towards that Weasel of all people.

“Already thought about it, but it just doesn’t make sense for anyone to want to put you through that.” Draco muttered back, as he lay on his bed, flicking his wand between his fingers.

Draco noticed Potter stop his pacing for a moment, eyeing him with a frown. “What?” Draco grumbled, not knowing what was going through that head of his. “Nobody should want to put _anyone_ through that.” Draco could hear the emphasis Potter was putting on ‘anyone’, implying he wasn’t satisfied with the way Draco had worded it. ‘Always the benevolent hero.’ Draco thought as he rolled his eyes out of sight from Potter.

“Then there’s gotta be a reasonable explanation for all this.” Potter said with a thoughtful expression. “We should try asking Hermione for help.”

“What? No way!” Draco opposed, sitting up in his bed.

“She’s smart Malfoy, if anyone would be able to figure this out it would be her.” Draco scowled at him, unable to deny the fact that he had a point.

“Fine…” Draco moaned.

“There’s one thing though…” Draco could feel the ominous presence of bad news from Potter as he spoke. “If you don’t want to make a big scene out of this, you’ll have to go get her.”

“What?” Draco protested, there was no way he would be going out to ask Granger for help.

Potter sighed. “To everyone else, you’re me right now. So, she’ll go along with you easily. If she suddenly sees you-” Pointing at himself “coming to her for something, I’d have to explain myself right there and then for sure.”

Draco groaned, still not wanting to leave the room until he was safely back in his body again.

***

Draco felt too exposed as he walked down the corridor to the great hall. Breakfast was almost over, which meant students were starting to slowly pour out of the hall, heading towards their classes or dorm rooms.

It was strange. People were smiling and saying good morning to him left and right. All the younger students looked awe-struck whenever they passed by him. It was a feeling he had completely forgotten existed.

He surveyed the long tables until he finally got hold of Granger, still seated at her usual spot besides Weasley.

He made his way over to their table, stopping in front of them. He almost had to remind himself not to sneer at them, as it had become a habit over the years.

“Hey, Harry! Look, I was showing Hermione the new collection of quidditch gear” Weasley was excitedly trying to shove a magazine into his face, and Draco was one second too late in keeping his mouth shut.

“That’s rubbish! The only places worthy to look for quidditch gear is Quality Quidditch Supplies or the Purple Snitch.” Draco blurted out in a mocking tone.

The look on Weasley’s face would’ve been hilarious if it wasn’t for the current predicament.

“You alright, Harry?” Granger studied him closely with worried eyes. She was quick at sensing things, so Draco couldn’t afford to blurt out anything else.

“Sorry, I’m just tired.” Draco said, trying to mimic Potter’s usually soft and calm tone. It proved more difficult than he had expected.

Granger seemed to let it slide though, as she nodded and muttered something about incessant late-night studies potentially being too much for him.

Weasley turned back to his sandwich with a frown, having taken a hit by Draco’s words that had seemingly been spoken by his best friend. Draco felt a tinge of satisfaction for having managed to get to Weasley so easily this way. Perhaps the switch wasn’t as bad as he thought.

“Er…Hermione?” Draco felt weird as he spoke her name for the first time in his life. It had always been Granger, or mudblood. Although after the war, the word mudblood was no longer something that could be uttered, nor did he desire to do so. It was part of his father’s control over him, teaching him from such an early age to discriminate against those who were not favoured by you-know-who. Granger had been one of the reasons as to why Voldemort had lost, and the world saved. For that, he was grateful.

“Do you have a minute?” He asked, trying to sound casual. “Yeah, sure! What is it?” Granger asked, and Draco noticed how Weasley had also started paying attention to the conversation now.

“Can I talk to you in private?” Draco was adamant about not having the Weasel know about what was going on. He would probably poison Potter’s mind into humiliating him in any way possible now that he had complete control of his body. Frankly, Draco had more to lose as most of the wizarding world would turn a blind eye to it had he tried to disgrace Potter’s reputation.

“Erm…” Granger looked between Draco and Ron, obviously feeling a bit conflicted with not letting her boyfriend take part in whatever was going on. “Sure.” She said, sending Weasley an apologetic look. Weasley just shrugged and didn’t seem too affected by being left out, he resumed his focus towards the quidditch magazine instead.

Draco walked briskly back towards the common room, Granger trailing behind him. He wanted to get back as quickly as possible, as it was too awkward being alone with Granger and having her believe he was Potter.

“You’re rather quiet, it’s making me worried about what you might’ve gotten yourself into.” Granger suddenly said, as she picked up her pace in order to walk beside him.

“It’s… well, you’ll just have to hear me out once we get back. And just as you know, I was reluctant about asking you.” Draco sighed, earning himself a strange look from Granger.

Draco opened the door to his shared room and motioned for Granger to get inside.

She stopped short as she saw what in her eyes was Malfoy sitting on Potter’s bed with a worried look on his face. “Hi Hermione.” He said in that usual soft tone of voice that did not belong to the body he was currently occupying.

Hermione just looked at him incredulously. “You… Why are you… You never call me by my first name.” She looked between the two beds and made clear to notice the obvious difference in who owned which bed. “That’s Harry’s bed, isn’t it?” She looked dumbfounded and in desperate need of an explanation.

“Please, sit down.” Potter motioned for Hermione to sit down by his desk.

***

“So… You’re telling me what…you’ve changed bodies?” Draco would’ve laughed at the look of utter bewilderment on her face, had he not been feeling the exact same thing himself.

“Yup…” Potter said in a resigned voice. “That makes no sense!” Granger cried.

“For a muggle-born wizard most of your life shouldn’t make sense to you. I’m sure you can try and believe what is happening.” Draco felt the words come out harsher than intended, as he was feeling the stress overtake him.

“That’s…” Granger scrutinized him like she had already done a couple of times by now. “You certainly sound like Malfoy.”

“Honestly, do you think I’d joke around about having that idiot’s body?” Draco pointed at Potter.

“Well, now you could be either one of you.” Unexpectedly Granger was visibly finding this more amusing than she should.

“So that’s why you were so snarky against Ron earlier!” Granger said thoughtfully, finally understanding the situation.

“What?” Potter looked at Draco with a stern look. “Are you that incapable of acting decent for one bloody minute?”

“He was all up in my face, anyone would’ve been annoyed by that!” Draco said in a defensive tone.

“He’s one of my best friends! You should’ve just dealt with it properly. Don’t go around making me look bad, just because you can!” Potter grabbed his collar, and Draco felt like he was in a surreal situation at this point. He knew it was Potter before him, but it was his own face that was firing a deadly glare towards him. ‘How odd…’ He thought.

“Why not? It’s not every day you get the chance to humiliate the great fucking Harry Potter!” Draco leered back. He knew he was starting to step onto thin ice. If Potter decided to do something while in his body, the consequences would be far worse. Why was he so incapable of avoiding an argument whenever he talked to Potter?

“This is so weird…” Both looked over at Granger who was observing the quarrel in front of her.

***

“Okay.” Hermione clasped her hands together as she was now pacing back and forth while Potter and Draco was sitting on each bed, waiting for her grand plan.

“Do me a favour and think back on the last couple of days.” She looked between the both of them. “Can you remember anyone looking suspicious around either of you, or have you consumed something you weren’t sure of what was? Were you exposed to something, or do you think you might’ve been?”

Draco thought for moment, trying to systematically go through the previous days. He had been so deprived of sleep that some of the days felt more like blurs than anything else.

“Not that I can think of…” Potter said, just as Draco shook his head.

“There’s gotta be something that must’ve triggered it.” Granger said, sighing.

“Wait… Oh shit…” Potter looked alarmed, which only made Draco distressed as well.

“A potion!” Potter said, pointing towards Draco. “I did sniff that potion of yours, if that counts.” Draco looked at him with wide eyes, trying to process the new information.

“Brilliant! That’s a start at least!” Granger said, looking much more enthusiastic at having found something steadfast to go by.

“Hold on. How do you know about the potion?” Draco felt himself tense up, both in anger and in fear of having been caught. It had to be bloody Potter!

“You’ve been acting weird lately. All sneaky and tense.” Potter said, shifting his position at the bed so that he was facing Draco. “I started paying more attention after I saw you steal ingredients from potion class.” Draco tried to keep his emotions under control and not let Potter see just how shaken he was from the fact that Potter knew about it. This could mean serious trouble.

“When I entered the room yesterday, I saw you shove something into that nightstand of yours. I knew you were up to something, so I figured I’d check what you were planning.”

“That’s none of your business!” Draco shot back, feeling his anger overflow.

Potter frowned at him and had a serious tone as he continued talking. “Well, we don’t have the best of relations, so I didn’t want to risk being at the receiving end of whatever you were concocting.”

“Always so sure that everything is about you.” Draco growled back.

“Anyway, I did check it out, but since the vial had no label on it, I had no idea what you were planning. I opened it and sniffed it to see if it was something I already knew what was. When I couldn’t determine what it was, I put it back. I was thinking of either confronting you about it the following day or ask Hermione if she knew what it might be.” Potter said as a matter of fact, making it seem like he had all the right in the world to look through someone else’s stuff.

“You’re unbelievable!” Draco snapped back, crossing his arms.

“You were stealing ingredients and making a potion in secret. Anyone would be worried about what you might be putting together!” Potter huffed.

“Alright! Calm down guys.” Granger interrupted, as she turned to Draco. “Can I see the potion?”

At least Draco felt a bit better at the idea that Granger was asking for his permission instead of demanding it from him. He opened the drawer and held out the vial for Granger to take.

“Did you sniff it as well?” She inquired as she turned the vial around in her hand inspecting it.

“Yes, before going to bed yesterday.” Draco murmured.

“What was the original purpose of it?” She had stopped twirling it around and was now focused on Draco.

“Well…” He felt himself having difficulties with how to word it, as he truly didn’t want Granger and Potter of all people to know about the nightmares that had haunted him since you-know-who and the death-eaters took over the manor and made life a living hell for him.

“Er… It’s just… for dreams or well nightmares per se.” Draco mumbled the last words, busying himself with his wand and trying to keep a nonchalant look on his face.

“To help appease nightmares?” Granger asked, Draco nodded in return.

“Okay, so what were the ingredients?” Draco looked up, not able to hide his surprise for a second as he looked at both Potter and Granger who didn’t seem affected by what he had said. Most people probably had nightmares about the war, thinking Granger or Potter was any different would be naïve, Draco thought.

“Here.” Draco handed her the potion book he had been storing in his nightstand. “It’s on page 234, all ingredients are listed as well as how to perform it and the effects it’s supposed to have.”

Granger placed the book at Potter’s desk and sat down, studying the potion. “Can I see the ingredients you used?” Draco felt a hint of annoyance at the fact that she was making sure whether he had used the right ingredients. Still he gathered the ingredients and placed them in front of her.

She sat for a minute going through each ingredient and checking it against the recipe. Finally, she paused and turned to both of the guys who were waiting patiently.

“This.” She held up the last vial that Draco had used to mix into the rest of the ingredients. “It’s not the midnight blue.” Draco frowned as he went over to inspect it. “How do you know? It looks exactly like it.”

“It does. But midnight blue and night blue are almost identical. If it wasn’t for the fact that I spent 5th year writing a paper on the differences between them I would’ve had no idea myself.” Granger said.

“But there’s no way I would’ve taken the wrong-“ Draco stopped as he remembered the event that had happened when he tried to obtain the last ingredient. “Damn it.”

“What is it?” Granger looked more than curious as she studied him.

“It’s because of bloody Potter!” Draco sneered.

“Hey! What exactly did I do this time?” If it wasn’t for the fact that Draco was pissed off, he would’ve almost found it amusing that Potter was so accustomed to getting into trouble that he added ‘this time’ to the end of it. However, the fact that it was indeed Potter’s fault, made him furious.

“You sneaked up on me and made me hurriedly snatch the ingredient. I must’ve taken the wrong one!” Draco fumed.

“So that’s what you were doing. You were acting suspicious indeed. But to be fair… I was just browsing the shelves myself, so it’s only your own clumsiness to blame for it.” Potter said, it was pissing Draco off that Potter wasn’t showing as much distress as him.

“This is on you!” Draco felt livid, as he had for the first time in his life been described as clumsy by none other than that damn Potter. How dare he? A Malfoy could be many things, but clumsy?! Not a freaking chance!

“Okay, both of you!” Granger interrupted once again. “Arguing isn’t going to solve anything. I need to check this out more and I’ll search the library to see if I can find a way to get you two back to where you belong.”

“In the meantime, though…” She gave them both a hesitant look. “You should probably avoid drawing any suspicion to the situation at hand. Meaning you’ll have to act like each other.”

“What?!” Both Draco and Potter shouted in unison.

“What do you think will happen if the headmistress finds out about this?” Granger looked at them sternly.

“Wouldn’t it be better to tell McGonagall though? She might be able to help.” Potter said.

“Maybe, but she won’t be able to look past the fact that a potion was brewed illegally.” Draco tensed at the word used. The realisation of what might happen to him if it was discovered made him pale. Although the potion hadn’t been a bad one or with ill intentions, it was still brewed without the knowledge of any teachers, and he had indeed taken ingredients from the potion room. With the strict rules related to any self-made projects made after the war, this could be blown out of proportions.

“It’s not supposed to be a bad potion though, and anyway, why care about it? It’s Malfoy who brewed it, so he’ll get detention or something like that. It’s a low price to pay if she can help figure this out.” Potter shrugged.

“If you do that, I’ll tell her you were in on it! You’d have to spend detention with me for a long time then, and you know I can make it feel like hell.” Draco warned Potter. He could only hope it was enough to make Potter change his mind. Because Potter didn’t know about the real scenario that would unfold. Most likely Malfoy would be expelled from school and would have to deal with the Ministry again. He knew they were only waiting for an opportunity where he managed to mess up enough so that they could reconsider sending him to Azkaban. The Malfoy name had earned itself much hatred throughout the war after all, and he knew that there were quite a few who felt opposed to the fact that he avoided an Azkaban sentence.

Potter gave him a strange look before sighing. “Fine...”

Draco felt himself let out a breath he had unconsciously been holding.

“Great! Now you better try and make sure you don’t stand out. The little scene during breakfast wasn’t a good start, so try to think before you act.” Granger said, before glancing between them.

“That means the both of you.”


	4. Seeing the world though your eyes

Draco felt weird as he tied a red and golden tie around his neck. It was outrageous to be draped in the clothes of the Gryffindor house instead of Slytherin. The only relief about it was that it wasn’t his own body who had to wear these colours.

“You better not embarrass me, Potter.” Draco gave him a pointed look as a grin spread across Potter’s face, making it hard for Draco to recognize his own features. Potter had always shown a lot of his emotions through facial expressions, which Draco thought didn’t suit his own face that usually tried to hide any emotions from showing.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” It just gave Draco a sense of uneasiness, as Potter was too much of a wildcard in general.

“Second period is about to start, we’ve already missed out on too much, so just go to class and keep a low profile.”

“I’m not all too worried about my situation, but you do know you’ll have to get through a whole class while sitting beside Ron, right?” Potter questioned, fully aware of the animosity between Draco and Weasley.

“I’ll manage…” Draco scoffed, feeling a little disheartened.

“Just lean on Hermione if you need to, she will probably do her best to help.”

“I promise I won’t try to kill him.” Potter laughed loudly as he straightened out his robes.

“Well, all I can say is that I’m glad you decided to stop the incessant hair gel usage before all of this happened.”

“Seems like you’re a bigger issue than Weasley.” Draco scowled. “Careful, wouldn’t want to harm your own body, would you?” It was provoking Draco to see how easily Potter could make him flare up, while he himself remained composed no matter what and was seemingly having fun with the little quarrel.

“It’s sturdy enough, I’m sure the satisfaction will outweigh the damage.” Draco shrugged. Again, Draco was only given a light chuckle, as Potter turned to head out the door.

After a little while Draco headed for the door as well. He got sight of Granger who was standing beside Ron, worry in her eyes as they were focusing on Potter who started mingling with Pansy and Blaise. Draco could only hope that they didn’t notice the imposter pretending to be him.

“Er… Hi guys…” Sure, Draco had spent a lot of his time throughout his years at Hogwarts staring at Potter and following him around to taunt him whenever he got the chance. He knew his behaviour well but having to act like him was something else entirely. He had to remind himself that he was in Potter’s body, and that’s what everyone else was seeing as well.

“Hey!” Granger jumped at the sound of Draco and twirled around to face him. “Ready for class?” Draco almost felt a bit of pity as the nervousness was awfully visible in her words.

“Yeah, let’s go.” Draco tried to mimic Potter’s nonchalant voice, but he was feeling uneasy himself.

The whole way to class, Granger had barely breathed as she continuously kept on rambling about the various homework loads that they should be working on and so on. Draco knew she was trying to win as much time as possible before she was forced to let Draco interact with Weasley.

Impressively enough she managed to keep the other two from speaking until they were sat in charms class listening to the professor.

At the end of class, they were given another long essay to write, making the students groan in dismay. Draco gathered his stuff and with a quick glance over at Potter, he exited the classroom trailing behind Granger and Weasley.

***

“Get this! The Prophet said that the ministry is soon going to open up positions that won’t need to be filled before after summer. It will allow for us 8th years to apply as well.” Weasley was excitedly showing The Prophet up into Draco’s face, which appeared to be a habit of his.

“And what exactly do _you_ intend to apply for?” Draco knew his voice was on the verge of a sneer, but Weasley seemed too preoccupied with the topic at hand to notice.

“Of course, I want to be an Auror, Harry! You already knew that.” Weasley looked dumbfounded at the question. “You’ll apply for an Auror position as well, won’t you?”

“I’m certainly that type of person, aren’t I?” Draco muttered, knowing the position would be fitting for Potter.

“Don’t worry, mate! You probably won’t have to even go through an interview. They would just see your name and you’ll be hired right away.” Draco knew Weasley was trying to pull off a joke, but he couldn’t help but feel the words sting as they were uttered. Of course, Potter would be able to choose whatever he wanted, and people would be all but begging him to apply for jobs here and there. He had saved them all and it wasn’t something anyone would forget for a long time.

Draco, on the other hand, knew he would be lucky to even get a job. He had to focus on his N.E.W.T.s. and only achieving great results in order to maybe be considered for a position where he could actually get the chance to showcase his skills. Even with full scored N.E.W.T.s. his last name could easily make most people turn their back at him.

“Bloody Potter.” Draco mumbled, he yelped as he felt an elbow hit his rib. Granger was giving him a warning look, making him realise that he had said it out loud. Luckily enough, Weasley had been busy filling up his plate and hadn’t heard his grumbling.

***

The whole day felt strange to him, as he found he did not fear being hexed at every corner. People were constantly smiling at him whenever they passed by him, and sometimes a first or second year would muster up the courage to ask him for an autograph.

Draco had given Granger an alarming stare as he didn’t know how Potter signed his name. Granger looked just as alarmed as she shrugged her shoulders in defeat, knowing she couldn’t help him. Draco ended up writing Harry Potter in cursive with a bit of flare at the end. He knew it would be far from what Potter probably did, but he also felt a bit of satisfaction in knowing people would be wondering what was going on if they ever saw the signature made by him and not the real Potter.

Although Draco enjoyed feeling like his former self in the way he was being treated as Harry Potter, he also found himself understanding Potter’s life a bit more. He had always thought him to be a selfish prick that didn’t have to worry about anything since everyone adored him.

However, he quickly realised that it wasn’t as easy as it seemed. People were constantly crowding around him, allowing him little space to think. It was like everyone just wanted to be seen together with the great saviour, but no one truly respected his privacy or was cautious with their words around him.

They would talk about people that had died during the war, without knowing them, but still thinking they had the right to bring it up to the person who had nightmares about their deaths. Draco felt himself become irritated. He might not be the nicest person out there, but these people were being far too inconsiderate to the person who bloody saved their lives and future.

***

Draco slumped down on his bed with a loud sigh as he felt the exhaustion rush over him. Having to pretend to be Harry Potter was far more tedious than he had ever imagined. The guy was supposed to have an easy life being the chosen one with all his popularity, but no… Draco had gone through too much disrespect and annoyance throughout the last week. Potter never had a minute for himself, and although Granger and Weasley were trying to help, it still felt like he was constantly being drowned in people wanting his attention.

“Tough day?” Draco jerked his head up in surprise, seeing Potter leaning against the doorframe.

“How do you survive the constant questioning and demands. It’s a bloody nightmare.” Draco scoffed, as he leaned back down on his pillow.

“Not such an easy life after all, huh?” Potter chuckled, striding over to his bed.

“Granger won’t let me tell them all to fuck off either, which isn’t helping.”

“I guess I’ll have to buy her something nice when this is all over.” Potter’s lips twitched slightly as he spoke.

“You should buy me something nice for still tolerating Weasley.” Draco grumbled.

“Hey, it’s not like I don’t have any struggles at all, you know.”

“I’m sure it must be difficult to suddenly feel how it’s like to be utterly stunning, but don’t worry, once we figure this out, you’ll be back in your own body again.” Draco taunted lightly.

“Prat.” Potter scoffed, but Draco noticed a faint smile on his lips. “But you know that’s not what I meant.” The sudden switch from banter to seriousness in Potter’s voice made Draco tense a bit. He realised Potter now had to experience his everyday life. It wasn’t a very pleasant one, Draco would know.

“Why don’t you tell anyone? I’m sure you’d get help if you- “.

“It’s not that bad.” Draco interrupted not wanting pity thrown at him.

“It’s not right, I know I’m the last to say anything considering our past, but things have changed now, and you shouldn’t need to go through something like this every day.” Potter had sat down and was looking at him intently. It felt weird being stared down by your own eyes.

“Well, it’s only natural for these people to loathe me. They have all the right to do so. I can handle a few comments here and there, it’s fine.” Draco made sure to keep himself composed as he spoke.

“They only need to understand you more, Malfoy. If you would let more people in, then I’m sure it would make it easier. You should try getting along with Ron and Hermione, they are good people and they won’t be too unreasonable if you give them a chance.”

Draco scoffed loudly at that. “You do know you included Weasley in that sentence of yours, right?”

“He just needs time. Sure, he’s stubborn, but he’s also a really great guy and he is good at supporting his friends.” Potter tried to reason, but Draco felt like it would be a futile attempt to try and befriend Weasley of all people.

“You’ve got Parkinson and Zabini which is great, but you need to open up a bit if you want to keep good relations with the both of them.”

“You’re quite the advisor, aren’t you, Potter?” Draco could feel his voice sounding icy as it came out. He knew Potter was trying, as always, to help those around him, but he just didn’t want to discuss this topic. He didn’t want to be just another pity case for Potter to try and save.

“I know it’s not my place, but I hope you know that you can at least talk to me if you need. I do understand your situation a lot more than you might think. And don’t be afraid of opening up a bit, it doesn’t mean you’re showing weakness.” Draco felt his hand twitch as the words were hitting a bit too close to home for his liking.

His whole life had been built upon the basis of not showing any weakness. This included not showing feelings or allowing yourself to rely on anyone else other than yourself. During the war, his mother had begged him to rely on her, that she would find a way for them to run away from it all. But he had been too afraid to disobey his father, and deep down he knew he wouldn’t be able to run anywhere that was out of reach from the dark lord.

“I’m fine.” Draco said, slipping under his blanket. “It’s late, I’m tired.”

“Alright.” Potter didn’t push any further, as he let out an almost inaudible sigh before slipping into bed himself.

***

Draco felt himself eat more than he had in a long while. It was of no use though since his own body couldn’t benefit from it. Luckily, it seemed like Potter did eat decently as well, Draco thought as he glanced across the great hall at the Slytherin table.

Although Draco still had to deal with certain nightmares that belonged to Potter, he also had dreams that were mostly made up of memories from spending late nights in front of the fireplace with friends, staying at the Burrow with the Weasleys and shooting across the quidditch field feeling the wind sting his face. Those were peaceful dreams where he would wake up feeling refreshed and serene. The lack of constant nightmares had made it possible for him to regain some much-needed sleep. It might be that not everything about being Potter was great, but the amount of sleep he could finally get was a life saver.

Draco’s gaze wandered back to the Slytherin table, as he tried to scrutinize his own face from across the hall. He knew Potter must be experiencing his nightmares the same way he was, but somehow it looked like Potter was doing alright so far. The dark circles weren’t as evident as it had been before. Perhaps Potter wasn’t experiencing all of his nightmares, or maybe he just knew how to deal with them better. When he realised that Potter had noticed his stare and was glancing back at him with a curious look in his eyes, Draco averted his attention back to his plate of food. 

***

“Ron, it’s our last year at Hogwarts, at least _try_ to make an effort.” Granger was scolding Weasley who looked miserable there he sat at the potion desk picking at the cauldron in front of him.

“I just don’t like potions. It’s such a difficult subject.” Weasley groaned back. “You get me right, Harry?" Weasley’s eyes were filled with despair.

“It’s just reading the formula and adding ingredients, how _hard_ can that be?” Draco shrugged back, not able to withstand the pathetic sight in front of him.

“What’s wrong with you lately, mate? It feels like your personality is all wrong.” Weasley sighed loudly, and Draco realised he had to say something in order to dim the suspicion that had started to brew in Weasley’s mind.

“I’m sorry, mate.” Draco felt like he had finally reached a new low as he was pretending to be friends with a Weasley. “I’m just stressed from all the homework, makes me a bit on edge.”

“It’s fine, I get you… I’m not better myself.” It seemed like the reply had appeased the doubt in Weasley’s mind. It was amazing how Weasley was able to make decent deductions on his own, which showed he definitely had potential to be an Auror. Yet, the easy dismissal of said deductions once someone told him differently was just as impressive, Draco snickered, before realising something. Weasley probably only dismissed things once it was Granger or Potter who talked him out of it. It wasn’t because he never kept to his own decisions, it was just that he trusted his friends more than anything else.

“Remember to stir it twice clock-wise and four times counter clock-wise.” Professor Shrew said loudly as he strolled around the classroom examining the potions.

Draco heard a shriek as he looked up and saw Pansy gaping at the smoke rising from Potter’s cauldron. He heard Blaise mutter to Potter if he was alright. It seemed like both Pansy and Blaise had a hard time comprehending the utter failure that Potter had managed to create while in his body.

“Ah, this is a great example on what not to do.” Professor Shrew was inspecting the mess and seemed overly gleeful at the fact that Malfoy had finally messed up. “Sadly, not everyone has an aptitude for potion making.”

“Fuck.” Draco could feel his blood boil when he saw Professor Shrew’s delighted expression as he walked over to inspect one of the Patil twin’s cauldron. Draco had been working extremely hard during potion classes, having to make sure he never messed up so that Professor Shrew couldn’t find a way to use it against him. He knew the professor hated him and would use whatever opportunity he could get to make sure Draco wouldn’t get a chance to find a job relating to potions later on.

“Oh my! I must say Mr. Potter, your natural talent for potion brewing is really something.” Professor Shrew seemed overly pleased at Draco’s work, and Draco abstained from rolling his eyes, as Potter had always been a total disaster when it came to making potions. There was certainly not a hint of ‘natural’ talent there, Draco scoffed to himself. Yet, Professor Shrew had never even mentioned talent whenever he had examined Draco’s work.

Weasley looked at him both in awe and utter betrayal. “How much have you practiced, mate? You’ve never made a potion this well before.”

“I forced him to practice, Ron. And you should do so too. Just look at the result it can have.” Granger seemed to use the situation to both lecture Weasley as well as save Draco from the trouble of trying to explain himself. It was a good thing, Draco thought, as he would probably lash out at Weasley if he were to speak right then.

Fortunately, it seemed like the amazement from Draco’s potion was enough to make Professor Shrew forget about Harry’s disastrous one.

But Draco knew it would be used against him later.


	5. Secrets are not easily kept hidden from those who cares

“I’ll assign you all a partner for today, once you’re teamed up, go practice the hexes I’ve taught you.” Professor Evergreen quickly started teaming people up.

“Granger, Potter.” Draco felt relieved that he was going up against Granger. It gave him a moment where he didn’t have to change his attitude to match that of Potter’s.

“Malfoy, Weasley.” Draco glance over at Potter who seemed far too happy about his team mate. Weasley, on the other hand, was showing the proper reaction as he groaned and shuffled over to Potter. It was a bit comical to see Weasley that distraught about being teamed up with what was in reality his best friend. He just hoped Potter wouldn’t be too obvious.

“Be sure to work on the speed of your shields everyone.”

Draco stood across from Granger. It was strange to be duelling her of all people. He hadn’t really experienced her duelling style before.

“I’ll start.” Granger said, as she lifted her wand.

Draco was quick with his shield, which was fortunate as Granger was unbelievable fast at throwing hexes. She was a strong opponent, and Draco could see how she was a witch to be reckoned with. They switched offense and defense, and as expected her shields were, if not as strong as his own, strong enough to withstand powerful attacks.

It was nice to just be in the moment and use his skills without having to fear that he might faint from exhaustion or make sure no one else ‘accidentally’ fires a hex his way. Granger was a good duelling partner as her analytical side allowed her to easily spot improvement potentials. Draco knew that she was sharp when it came to stuff like that, so he decided it was only reasonable to take the tips he could get. Granger looked pleased to finally have someone who listened to her advices and gave back just as useful ones.

***

“Guys… I think Malfoy might be up to something.” Both Granger and Draco halted their actions, looking at Weasley.

“What?” Granger managed to squeak out.

“Well, I was teamed up with him during defense class today, and he wasn’t his usual self at all!” Weasley was furrowing his brows, his eyes locked on the blonde figure sitting at the Slytherin table.

“Everyone has changed, Ron.” Granger was still trying to keep herself composed as she pretended not to be overly interested in the conversation.

“Yeah, sure, but…” Weasley hesitated as he took a bite of his chicken. “He’s way too different. He was being all chummy and acting like he and I were friends.” Granger looked at Draco with an alarmed expression. All Draco could do was return the bewildered look.

“It was disturbing, I think Malfoy is trying to befriend me, but he’s Malfoy so surely that’s impossible.” Sure enough, there wasn’t any reason as to why Draco would even contemplate befriending Weasley that easily.

“You’re just imagining things, there’s no way he would do that.” Draco said. That damn Potter, not able to suppress his goodie-two-shoes nature at all.

“Yeah, surely. But don’t you guys think it’s weird. He doesn’t even bother us at all, and when we pass by him and his friends, I could’ve sworn he smiles at us and I mean smile not smirking or leering.” Weasley seemed laughably upset about it, and Draco cursed himself for not having thought of this as a way to mess with Weasley back in the days. He apparently goes mental when he thinks Draco is being nice to him.

“Now, now… Don’t become _too_ infatuated with him.” Draco mocked, not able to keep it to himself.

“ _You’re_ one to talk! Having spent most of your years at Hogwarts obsessing over the git day in and day out.” Weasley scoffed. Draco just shrugged and resumed his eating. Was that how they had been viewed by people? Being obsessed with one another? Sure, they had spent most of their school years trying to get under each other’s skin and taunting each other whenever they got the chance, but that was just pure rivalry, Draco noted.

***

“You lot! Meeting in Draco and Potter’s room, now.” Pansy looked livid as she barged into the common room followed by Blaise and Potter.

Draco looked in surprise at Granger who looked just as baffled. Draco then turned to look at Potter trying to discern what was going on.

“Just do as she says.” Potter mumbled with a sigh, motioning for them to go to their room.

As they closed the door to the room, Draco sat down, out of habit, in his own bed. Pansy walked over to him briskly, and Draco was almost certain she was about to attack him before she stopped and leaned in. Inches from his face she scrutinized him for a moment.

“Draco?” At the mention of his name, Draco widen his eyes in shock. “How did you?” Draco stopped himself as he looked over at Potter, who only shrugged in defeat.

“I swear you’re incapable of the simplest things, Potter.” Draco huffed in annoyance.

“That’s Draco alright.” Blaise muttered bemused, at which Draco scowled at him.

“I can’t believe you! How could you do something like this and not tell us?” Pansy was franticly pacing back and forth waving her arms at him.

“It’s not like we did anything on purpose. And honestly we figured it would be for the best if no one knew about it.”

“Granger knew!” Pansy stopped and frowned at him.

“We needed her help in figuring it all out.” Draco said defensively, as he knew Pansy could be rather scary when pissed off properly.

“And you left us to go around worrying about you because you were acting like a weirdo!”

“What?” Now it was Potter who spoke up. “I didn’t act like a weirdo.” He tried to defend himself.

“You talked way too much, you ate properly and you very overly kind to everyone around you. That’s the opposite of the person you’re embodying.” Pansy let out a sigh.

“You idiot! How could it be that difficult to shut up and act with even a tiny bit of elegance, Potter.” Draco rolled his eyes as he spoke.

“I’m sorry that I’m not used to acting like a pompous prick, Malfoy!” Potter retorted, earning himself a dismayed gasp from Draco.

“What the bloody hell is going on?!”

Everyone went silent as Weasley’s voice rang out. To be fair it seemed like it wasn’t just Draco who had forgotten that Weasley had been dragged into the whole ordeal at this point as well.

“Er… Well…” Potter turned to Weasley and with a wild gesture between himself and Draco he said. “That’s Malfoy, I’m Harry. We’ve kinda…switched bodies, if that makes sense.”

“It really doesn’t!” Weasley looked outraged as he stood there trying to take in what was happening. “How the hell did that happen? And more importantly, have I been interacting with Malfoy all this time, thinking it was you?”

“Calm down, I suffered just as much from having to interact with you.” Draco scoffed.

“This is insane! Why not tell McGonagall?” Weasley cried as he scowled at Draco, while being uncomfortable as the embodiment of him was standing beside him patting his shoulder.

“We thought about it, but she would be furious about it since it’s a homemade potion gone wrong. Hermione is trying to find a solution, so we’ll wait for her to do her research first.” Potter said sternly, which seemed to appease the others if only a tiny bit.

“So, then the two of you have just been pretending to be each other for the last couple of weeks?” Blaise said with a raised eyebrow. “That’s hilarious!” He laughed although no one else seemed to share his gleefulness.

“You should’ve at least told us, we would’ve helped.” Pansy said sighing once more but looking less angry after Blaise’s outburst.

“Yeah, I’m sorry. We just thought it was for the best to keep it secret.” Draco said, feeling a bit regretful as he should’ve known his friends would’ve backed him no matter what. It was good to know nonetheless though.

“Well, since you all know about it now, we would really appreciate it if you do help us keep it from leaking out to anyone else until we figure it out.” Potter said, looking over at Weasley who in the end, with a distraught look on his face, nodded.

Pansy and Blaise hummed in agreement.

***

The scene unfolding in front of him was almost comical had it not been for the fact that it was his own body that had to go through it.

Macmillan had loudly taunted Draco about the potion failure from last time as they were stood outside the potion classroom. Blaise had told him to shut up, and Macmillan had somehow found the courage to walk up to Blaise telling him he wasn’t one to talk.

Potter, as usual, wasn’t one to step down from a challenge, even when Draco wished he would have done so. Fair enough if it had been with his own body, but why drag Draco’s body into it.

As Potter tried to calm the situation, Macmillan had pushed him harshly against the wall.

“Piss of Macmillan!” Draco jumped at the sound of Weasley’s voice. He hadn’t imagined Weasley would do anything, considering it was still Draco’s body that took the hit.

“What do you care? He’s a fucking death-eater!” Macmillan roared, eyes flaring with anger.

“The war is over, dimwit!” Weasley scowled as he checked on Potter. It did make the situation quite surreal as a display of friendship was supposedly shown between a Malfoy and a Weasley. “You alright, mate?” Weasley asked as he gave Potter a worried look.

“Yeah, thanks.” Draco felt like he was watching some weird movie about himself, where he had ended up with Potter’s personality and vice versa. It was, for lack of better words, ridiculous.

“This makes no sense! Potter, you off all would agree that the prat deserves this!” Macmillan turned to Draco with a look that said he already expected Potter to be on his side.

“I’d rather prefer if you don’t talk to me. Just seeing your face makes my head hurts.” Draco scoffed, unable to take on a nicer approach. The git had been bothering him constantly since the start of school, he supposed it was finally time to do something about it. 

“What the hell?! You guys have always hated Malfoy, why do you suddenly act like you’re all best friends now!” The incredulous look on Macmillan’s face was refreshing, Draco though.

“People change Macmillan, but apparently not everyone.” Pansy scoffed, turning to Potter to check on him as well.

“As if you’re one to talk Parkinson! You’re just as bad, and honestly you shouldn’t have come back here, none of you should have!” Finch-Fletchley, who always seemed to stick by Macmillan’s side shouted out.

“Look, if you can’t stand someone then look the other way. We’re here to study for our N.E.W.T.s. not bicker about something we can’t change.” Blaise sighed, not liking to be the confrontational type.

“Go to hell, Zabini!” Macmillan sneered out. Draco saw the twitch in Blaise’s eye as Draco knew he was starting to get really pissed off now.

“Mistakes were made and there were some serious bad ones, but it doesn’t help for the few of us left to fight among ourselves. We have one year left before most of us will be going our separate ways, so until then, keep your shit together. As head girl of our year, if I see _any_ more unfair treatment, I’m gonna snap!” Granger looked furious, everyone seemed to back off at her words, feeling the intimidation of one of the brightest witches known. 

Just then Professor Shrew appeared out of thin air, seemingly unaware of the situation. He gestured for everyone to head inside and ready their cauldrons.

“Malfoy,” Malfoy looked up to see Weasley look at him with a strangely apologetic look. “I’m sorry about that, alright. You shouldn’t listen to what they’re saying.” He gave Draco an awkward pat on the shoulder before going into the classroom.

‘What the hell just happened?’ Draco thought to himself, not really believing the event that just transpired.

“Hey,” Draco reached out to stop Potter before walking into class. “What was up with Weasley? Why is he acting like that? Should we be worried?” Potter looked at him for a moment with furrowed brows trying to take in the rapid fire of questioning going on.

As he realised what Draco meant, he chuckled lightly. “I just had a small talk with him the other day. He wanted to know more about the situation and I honestly don’t blame him for that. I told him to be nice to you, or me I guess, or both of us that is.” Potter said.

“He has no reason to be nice to me though.” Draco whispered back, as a few students passed by them.

“He trusts my judgement, I guess.” Potter shrugged.

“Which is?” Draco questioned quietly.

“Short version?” Potter said, not waiting for an answer. “That you’re not a bad person, you’ve gone through more than enough and you deserve a chance despite having a sharp tongue at times.” Potter shrugged.

“Will you ever stop with that relentless kindness of yours? With you constantly being nice, it’s making me into the biggest asshole, you prat.” Draco hissed back in a low whisper; his voice did not hold much animosity he realised after he spoke.

Potter just grinned at him as he entered the classroom leaving no more room for discussion. Draco stood there for a moment taking in the fact that Potter had vouched for him, Malfoy, who had spent years of his life trying to make Potter’s life miserable.

***

Draco yawned as he sat up in bed. He looked at his watch which showed 4:43. Still a couple of hours until morning, Draco thought to himself.

He didn’t have as many nightmares when he was in Potter’s body, but he did occasionally wake up in the middle of the night anyway out of pure habit. He looked over at Potter’s bed, a bit surprised as he realised it was empty.

He slipped out of bed and headed for the door. It was strange to feel the quietness of the common room during the night. He looked over to the side as he noticed the fireplace was lit sending waves of heat across the room. The subdued crackling of the wood had a calming effect.

He quietly tip-toed over and saw Potter sitting in the sofa, a blanket over his legs as he was reading a book. “Couldn’t sleep?” Potter looked up as Draco stood at the opposite edge of the sofa.

“Something like that.” Draco said looking at the fire dancing. “May I?” He asked as he gestured toward the sofa. Potter nodded as he pulled his legs up a bit giving space for Draco to sit.

“What are you reading?” Draco asked as he sat down, trying to read the title on the book. “Oh, it’s just a muggle book, ‘The Blue Bakery by The Ocean Side’ it’s called.” Potter shrugged, before putting it down on the table.

“That’s an awfully long title.” Potter chuckled a bit. “Indeed, it is.” He said smiling fondly at the flames.

“Why are you awake?” Draco asked, fiddling with the edge of the blanket.

“Well, I just kinda like the atmosphere here in the morning hours before anyone has woken up yet. It’s rather peaceful, don’t you think?” Potter said. “That’s true… Makes it easier to clear your thoughts.” Draco murmured back.

  
“Are you worried?” Potter asked softly.

“About what?”

“The potion and whether or not we’ll figure out a way to reverse it.”

“Well, I’m less worried by the fact that Granger is helping.” Draco shrugged back.

“With both you and Hermione working on it, I’m sure you’ll be able to figure it out eventually.” Potter said with much more confidence than Draco felt was befitting the situation.

“Must’ve been awful to do well in potions and have all the glory given to me.” Potter suddenly said, half-jokingly, but Draco could see a hint of regret in his eyes for the event that had occurred previously.

“At least I’m getting more recognition in defence against the dark arts.” Draco snickered back, trying to lighten the mood. He was rather good at it already, but Potter had some serious skills in that department, which had led Professor Evergreen to nod in approval more than once.

“They won’t know what happened once we’re back and I start to mess up potions again.” Potter laughed.

“When we get back to ourselves, I’ll help you get better at potions, cus that work of yours is truly devastating.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Potter chuckled.

The room fell silent for a moment, the only sound coming from the crackling of the fireplace as it continued its dance of red, yellow and orange.

“Listen, I’m sorry if you didn’t like me talking to Ron about everything, but he kinda had to understand the whole picture in order to get a better understanding of you as well. If you just give him a change, you’ll see that he’s a good guy. Hermione too, the two of you would probably find that you have much more in common than you might think.” The conversation became more serious with Potter’s words and honesty.

“It’s fine. It’s a weird situation after all, so I guess I would’ve wanted to know it all as well, had it been me.” Draco shrugged. He wasn’t about to start a fight over it, and he had also felt a tinge of relief at the fact that Weasley had jumped into action the moment Potter was heckled. He knew Weasley was doing it mostly for Potter, but it felt nice to watch himself be defended by someone other than Pansy and Blaise.

They continued chatting, mostly reminiscing about the old days, until they felt the first rays of sunlight peer through the windows, which signalled that it was time to get ready for a new day.


	6. And so we return

Granger sat quietly as she read through yet another enormous potion book. The two of them had spent long days at the library trying to figure out a way to reverse the effect of the potion.

After the both of them had been reading for about two hours, Granger decided to break the silence. “Looks like there’s little chance of finding a potion that can actually redo the effect.” She sighed while rubbing her temples.

“Everything needs to have a counterpart, even if we can’t find the exact correct formula for this, something close enough might be able to do the trick.” Draco muttered back, aware that if Hermione was uncertain about finding a cure, it might very well be close to impossible.

“That’s the thing though…” Draco looked up as Granger was looking of into the distance with thoughtful eyes. “We know the formula that made it happen, so if we reverse the ingredients and make some tweaks here and there, then maybe…” Draco’s eyes widen.

“You’re thinking of creating our own potion.” Draco more stated than asked. Granger gave him a big grin. “Why not? We’re both decent potion makers, I’m sure if we work together, we could pull it off.”

“I always assumed you were against breaking the rules. Brewing our own potion like that would be illegal.” Draco gave her an incredulous look.

She shrugged. “Well, when one of your best friends is the number one rule breaker in school it’s difficult not to be affected by it.” Maybe Granger wasn’t as bad as Draco had always assumed.

“We better head for the room of requirements for this though.” Granger said as she looked around the library.

Draco nodded in agreement, and they headed out of the library.

They were seated in a big sofa in front of a fireplace that lit up the room in a warm orange light. Granger flipped through the potion book Draco had previously used to brew the potion and conjured up a cauldron.

“I’m fairly certain I know which ingredients are needed to counteract the one’s you used, although I’m not completely sure about the first vial one.” She said as she skimmed through a few other potion books to make sure of her deductions.

“Found it!” Draco said, feeling more excited than he had in a while. “It’s most likely this one.” Draco pointed at the top right of the page. “That’s great!” Granger said enthusiastically.

“We still need to get hold of the ingredients though.” Draco murmured as he peered over the formula together with Granger.

“I’m fairly certain all of them can be found in the potion classroom.”

“But getting in there isn’t that easy. I had to go through many classes trying to procure the ingredients I needed in order to not seem overly suspicious.” Draco sighed at the thought of having to go through the same procedure once more.

“Lucky for you I’ve got access to the potion classroom.” Granger looked overly satisfied with the wide-eyed look she received from Draco. “How?”

“I told Professor Shrew I wanted to work on my potion essay and try out a few potions on my own. He gave me permission to do so.” Granger shrugged.

“Always the favourite, aren’t you Granger.” Draco sighed, knowing Professor Shrew would never give him the same treatment. “Hey, it’s saving us a lot of trouble right now.” Granger argued back with a cheeky grin.

“It is indeed.” Draco couldn’t deny the fact that this made everything a whole lot easier.

“Also, with everything we’ve been through, I think it’s only fair to start being on a first name basis, Draco.” Hermione said as they walked out of the library. He looked at her with big eyes, as it was the first time he had ever heard her call him by first name.

“That’s gonna take some time to get used to.” Draco muttered back. “Call it payment for helping with the potion.” Granger grinned back at him. He couldn’t help but smile at that. “Fair enough.” 

After scurrying off towards the potion classroom, they made quick work of obtaining the needed ingredients before hurrying back to the room of requirements.

“We should start with this.” Draco handed Hermione one of the ingredients as he made sure to double check the amount needed. One after another the ingredients were measured up and added to the cauldron.

A strange notion came over Draco as he realised just how easy it was to work with Hermione. She had the same level of understanding as him and they seemed to easily catch up on each other’s reasonings and decisions.

“We’ll have to stir it for a moment now, so we can take turns doing it.” Draco said as he motioned at the cauldron filled with the varied ingredients.

“It would’ve been so much easier working with you in potion class rather than those two morons.” Hermione sighed, but Draco could hear a certain fondness in her voice when talking about her best friends.

“I suspected it must’ve been hard at times dealing with not only one but two people of equal uselessness.” Draco sniggered, as he stirred the potion. 

“You have no idea. I mean they are two of the bravest people I’ve ever met, and I would never trade them in for anyone else, but my god…!” Hermione threw her hands up.

Draco felt a laugh slip out of him before he could stop it. Hermione giggled a bit before starting to laugh herself. “They have absolutely no sense of danger!” She added as she laughed harder.

“But…” Hermione said as she dried a few stray tears from her eyes. “That’s what makes them such great people.” Her tone was warm, and Draco could feel how much the two idiots meant to her.

“That’s true…” Draco murmured as he also managed to calm his laughing. It had been an exhilarating feeling to finally have a proper laugh with someone.

“Say, how has it been to experience life from Harry’s point of view?” Hermione questioned with a bit more seriousness.

“It’s been…” Draco took a moment to consider his answer. “Different, I guess. Not as easy as I thought it would be either.”

“Right.” Hermione said solemnly. “It might look like his life is easier than it actually is. I always feared what might happen to him in the long run, having people constantly invading his personal space.” She looked troubled as she spoke.

“Yeah, I’d say he’s far too optimistic for someone who has to go through that on a daily basis.” Draco agreed thoughtfully.

“Exactly! I’ve always told him to talk to me if he needs to, and although he smiles at me and tells me he will, he never comes to me with any of his problems.” Hermione sighed. “I think he doesn’t want to add more to my plate, and I’m sure he must feel a bit left out now that Ron and I are together.”

“Isn’t he dating that Weasley girl?” Draco frowned, thinking back to the time he had learned that Potter had decided to date Weasley’s little sister of all people.

“They broke up before the war. It was just too much going on I suppose.”

“Then why not get back together?” A weird sensation washed over him at his own words, he couldn’t quite figure out why he felt like he didn’t fully mean it.

“It isn’t that simple. I think they both grew apart quite a bit during the war. They’re still friends, but they decided it was for the best not to try getting back together once more.” Hermione shrugged.

“Ron is pretty bummed out by it. He was looking forward to having Harry be part of the family.” She added with a faint smile.

“I bet he did.” Draco chuckled a bit at the thought of Weasley grumbling over it.

“Tell me, what do you think about Harry?”

“What?” Draco was taken aback slightly at the sudden question.

“I mean, you’ve known him for many years, but it’s only recently that you’ve been properly hanging out with him and sharing a room with him. Have it changed your view on him at all?” Hermione gazed at him with a look that only showed an honest interest in the topic, nothing else.

“Well, obviously it has changed since before the war.” Draco said, looking down at the potion he was calmly stirring. “He did save my life as well, on multiple occasions, so I can’t say that I hate him or anything.” It felt weird to be talking about Potter like this, but he felt like Hermione had helped him enough to be truthful with her.

“What about him as a person though? You’ve got the chance to experience his life as well as being around him enough to understand his personality, haven’t you?”

“Sure, and I can with confidence say that he’s still got that foolish sense of constantly trying to be a hero.” Draco snickered, which earned him a small chuckle from Hermione. “But I guess he is a better person than I thought he was.” Draco mumbled, it felt odd to compliment Potter of all people.

“That’s true… You just have to get past the heavy amounts of bad ideas and lack of self-preservation, and you’ve got yourself a very decent guy.” Hermione joked.

“Well, I guess it was those qualities that saved us all, so we bitterly have to accept them.” Draco hummed back with a small smile forming on his lips.

“I’m glad you think so. It wouldn’t be the worst if the two of you were able to open up to one another. If anything, I think you both would be the best at understanding each other’s past.” Hermione gave him a small smile as she motioned to the cauldron, taking over the job of stirring.

“We couldn’t be more different though.” Draco said, busying himself with the sleeve of his shirt as he felt himself being far more honest than he had intended. “He’s the saviour of the wizarding world, and I’m a former death-eater.” Draco noted how difficult it felt to say the last words in front of Hermione. He was aware of how much she had sacrificed for the cause as well, and she had every right to hate him for the side he had chosen to follow.

“You both had to face impossible situations because of who you were, so I don’t really think you’re as different as you believe.” Hermione said, staring into the cauldron for a moment before looking up at Draco. “I know you blame yourself, and I’m not sure if it means much if I say it, but I want you to know that I’ve forgiven you.” Draco felt himself wince at the words. It wasn’t right. She had suffered under his torment since long before the war, yet here she was, taking the high road.

“You might be one of the smartest people I’ve ever known, but you’re also foolishly forgiving, you know.” Draco muttered, as he saw a small smile form on Hermione’s lips. “But thank you.” He added all but a whisper.

Before another word could be uttered, Hermione’s attention was drawn towards the cauldron. “Look!” She said excitedly. “It’s changed colour!” Draco peered into the cauldron, and it was indeed a different colour. It had taken the form of a deep purple.

“This is it. All or nothing.” Hermione said with a nervous grin as she poured the potion into a vial. Draco nodded as he felt a surge of anticipation run through him.

“Let’s go!” She said. They gathered their stuff before heading for the common room.

***

“I think we’ve got it!” Hermione and Draco barged into the common room, which had Weasley jump and spill ink all over his homework. He groaned, while Potter tried to help clean it up which only resulted in making things worse. The few people present in the common room had been eyeing Weasley and 'supposedly' Malfoy sitting together in the common room with confusion, but now people seemed far more concerned when Malfoy started cleaning up Weasley's mess.

Before anyone could say anything about the odd behaviour and unusual friendliness between Weasley and Malfoy, Draco motioned for them to hurry over to the lit fireplace that that had bookshelves sticking out on one side, covering them slightly from the view of the rest of the common room.

“Look at this!” Potter furrowed his brows as he looked at the potion Hermione was proudly showing off.

  
“We came to the conclusion that finding a potion that could turn you two back was impossible. So, we decided to brew it ourselves!” Draco couldn’t help but feel a bit of pride at the work he and Hermione had put into this. If it did work, then they would’ve created a brand-new potion from scratch. That was pretty amazing in itself, sadly they wouldn’t be able to put it on their resume’s considering the circumstances.

“It needs to be ingested right before going to bed, and hopefully, if it works, it’ll turn us back before morning.” Draco added, looking at Potter.

“Well, there’s no one I trust more when it comes to potion than the two of you. We’ll try it out tonight then.” Potter said as he handed the potion back to Hermione.

Draco couldn’t help but notice the insinuation that Potter trusted _his_ potion skills to that extent as well.

***

“You ready?” Draco asked as he held up the vial containing the potion. “As ready as I’ll ever be.” Potter muttered, before accepting the vial and taking a long sip of it.

Draco did the same, and a sense of unease washed over him at the thought of it not working. What would they do if they weren’t able to get back into their own bodies? Would they have to tell McGonagall about it, and risk Draco getting expelled and having to face the ministry once more?

“Don’t worry. I have faith that it’ll work.” Potter gave him a reassuring smile, as if reading his mind. “And if it doesn’t?” Draco could hear his own worry drip off his words.

“Then we’ll figure something else out.”

“Always the optimist, aren’t you?” Draco felt a hint of relief at the certainty in Potter’s words. Somehow, he understood why so many people had decided to follow Potter during the war.

“Always.” Potter just grinned as he got into bed. Draco did the same and with a flick of his wand, the room turned dark.

***

“Wake up, Malfoy.” Draco groaned as he felt someone shake his shoulder. “I must say you’ve lost quite a bit of handsomeness during the night.”

“Impossible…” Draco grumbled as he cracked one eye open and peered up at the figure in front of him. It took him a second before he jolted up, coming dangerously close to the person in front of him.

“Now that makes me wonder if you were knowingly defending my appearance or you forgot that the whole body switching happened.” Potter was grinning at him, and for once Draco didn’t respond as he felt a surge of relief dwell up inside of him.

“It worked.” Draco unconsciously reached his hand out to touch Potter’s cheek. “Yeah.” Potter mumbled, looking a bit startled at the sudden intimacy. As Draco realised what he had been doing he quickly withdrew his hand.

There was a moment of silence as they both sat there, a hint of awkwardness filling the air around them until Draco furrowed his brows.

“How dare you suggest I’m less handsome?!” He gave Potter a pointed look, which in turn just made Potter laugh loudly, the awkwardness quickly dissipating.

“I figured it would wake you right up, hearing something like that.” Potter had a cheeky grin on his face that was irritatingly charming to Draco.

“Prat.” Draco grumbled.

***

A few heads turned in the great hall when Hermione jumped up in glee as Draco and Potter told her about the potion doing its work.

“That’s amazing! I’m so glad we managed to figure it out!” Overjoyed she hugged Potter before turning to Draco.

“I can’t believe we did it!” Before Draco could utter another word, she had engulfed him into a big hug as well. It was hard not to take part in the celebration, so he chuckled as he hugged her back, knowing it would be the start of many new rumours around Hogwarts.

“Pansy, Blaise!” Hermione shouted as the two Slytherins entered the great hall. Yet another rumour, Draco thought to himself, unable to hide the smile on his face that Hermione had become close enough to his friends to use their first names as well.

Both Pansy and Blaise looked a mix of shocked and delighted at the news of the potion working and was drawn into Hermione’s talk about how she and Draco had been working on finding a potion for ages.

Surely it was a strange mix of people gathered together at the Gryffindor table, but Draco paid it no mind. He felt, for once, like things were about to change for the better.

***

That evening Draco sat with his legs crossed in his bed as he finished up some of his overdue homework, when Potter broke the silence. “Tell me… When you were in my body, did you experience any nightmares that were mine?”

Draco felt a twitch in his hand, as he thought back to the nightmares that had involved you-know-who far too many times. “I did.” He said curtly.

“Was it all nightmares?” At this Draco closed his eyes to try and remember. He had been too focused on the times he had seen you-know-who that he hadn’t taken the time to realise that there had been moments where everything felt peaceful. He would be enjoying late nights with Hermione and Weasley or fly across the quidditch field so fast that he felt like nothing could stop him.

“No, there were moments where it was just… dreams I guess.” Draco’s voice came out softer than he had intended. He quickly cleared his throat.

“I see… Right after the war it was the worst. The nightmares kept me awake relentlessly, and I could go for days with barely any sleep.” Harry shifted a bit there he sat on his bed. “It wasn’t until Hermione started to beg me to get help that I finally managed to reach out to someone with expertise on this.”

Harry looked at him, and if Draco hadn’t paid close attention, he could’ve easily mistaken the look in his eyes as pity. Yet, he realised that it was more a look of someone who understood him, who understood what he was going through. “I know how difficult it can be to make that decision, trust me. But I have also experienced how much it can help. Now, although I still have nightmares, it is not close to how it was. I sleep better and the dreams that are peaceful are only increasing.”

“I-… Of course you make sense, but I just don’t think I-.“ “You don’t think you deserve it?” Draco felt himself stop midsentence as he realised how vulnerable he was currently being. What Potter just said was something he had never intended to tell anyone.

“You think that your decisions during the war was your own and that you choose to do bad, so you don’t think you deserve any redemption.” Draco felt his pulse quicken, Potter was reading him like an open book, and he didn’t like it.

“They _were_ my decisions!” Draco hissed, unable to keep his composure.

“You were backed into a corner. If only I had been able to help you back then. I should’ve realised it earlier myself.” The calmness and melancholy sound of Potter’s voice only frustrated Draco more.

“Stop trying to justify me! I wasn’t your responsibility, and I did a hell of a lot of things that shouldn’t be forgiven!”

“That doesn’t mean you don’t deserve help, Malfoy. Although you did some bad things because you were forced and in order to save your family, you still did things that helped us win as well.”

“I nearly ruined everything! At the manor I almost got you killed!” Draco yelled feeling a lump in his throat making it difficult to keep his voice steady.

“But you didn’t. You were terrified and trying your best to protect your family, like anyone would’ve done, despite that you put yourself in danger only to save me, Hermione and Ron.”

“I _didn’t_ save you! I was a coward! I could barely tell them I was uncertain of your identity! Had I been _brave_ I would’ve told them it wasn’t you!” Draco felt himself lose control as tears started trickling down his cheeks, he hid his face in his hands.

“Stop trying to blame yourself. I’ve seen your nightmares, and I had no idea about the way you were treated at the manor. If I had been in the same position, with none of my friends there to help me then I would’ve done the same.” Potter said as he went over to Draco’s bed and sat down beside him. “Can I hug you?” Draco thought that he should refuse it, but the softness of Potter’s voice made him unable to stop himself from giving a short nod.

Potter embraced him, slowly wrapping his arms around him. It felt safe, like he was being protected from the horrible thoughts that kept following him wherever he went. “If it hadn’t been for that uncertainty of yours, we’d all be dead, and the world would’ve been a very different one right now.”

“You gave us time… it was enough to allow us to escape.” Potter’s voice was soft and quiet, soothing.

“You’re so damn persistent at only seeing the good in people…” Draco managed to mumble through sobs.

He felt the vibrations run through him as Potter lightly chuckled. “I’ve just become very good at differencing between good and bad. And you are definitely not a bad person, I’ll continue to fight you on that until you realise it yourself as well.”

***

The past few days Draco had felt something strange when he and Potter crossed paths. He knew what had caused it though, as the previous conversation they had delved into involved lots of shouting, heavy crying and falling asleep tightly locked into an embrace with Potter.

Before it had been a much easier task to avoid Potter, but now it had become tedious. Pansy and Blaise had decided to sit with Hermione, Weasley and Potter whenever they were in the great hall. This resulted in Draco having to do the same.

Everyone else seemed pleased with the situation, unaware of the current predicament Draco was facing.

It wasn’t that he disliked Potter or anything, but he felt embarrassment. He had let his feelings take over the other day and had been completely honest with Potter there he stood shouting at him. Potter had been calm throughout it all and hugged him until he fell asleep. That definitely made him a decent guy, but Draco couldn’t help it.

He was too mortified to look his way, afraid of having to come to terms with whatever feelings might rise to the surface if he did.


	7. Compassion goes a long way

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading this story, hope you liked it.  
> All comments are appreciated, so do tell me what you thought of it :) 
> 
> On we go to the last chapter!

After yet another day successfully interacting as little as possible with Potter, Draco found himself cornered.

As Draco had closed the door and turned around, he felt himself yelp as he stood face to face with Potter. “Are you deliberately trying to avoid me?”

“What? No!” Draco knew he wasn’t sounding overly convincing, but he blamed it on the fact that Potter had ambushed him, and he hadn’t been given enough time to think. It wasn’t helping that Potter was standing exceptionally close to him.

“It’s not like that at all!” Draco tried to slide to the right and get away from Potter’s intimidating stance, but it only made things worse as Potter placed his hand on the wall, making the escape futile.

“If it’s about the other day, then I’m sorry if I overstepped. I don’t want us to end up not talking anymore because of it.” Potter frowned as he looked at him with a troubled expression.

“It’s not… Well, maybe it is, but it isn’t what you think…” Draco was stumbling over his words at this point, which he hadn’t had the experience of doing before. Was the situation really making him this flustered?

“Then tell me. I don’t want us to stop talking now that everyone gets along with each other.” Potter made no indication of moving his hand or allowing for more space between them.

“Please, you’re too close.” Draco placed his hand on Potter’s chest intending to push him back, but it felt like a brick wall in front of him. He knew from being in Potter’s body that the guy was well built. He had put on an impressive amount of muscles during the war, which didn’t make the current situation any easier for Draco.

“I didn’t mean to offend you or make you uncomfortable, if you hate me again, then-“ “Hate you?” Draco felt himself bristle at the fact that Potter could think he hated him. “I don’t hate you; I’ve never hated you! Sure, you were a damn pain in the arse for most of the earlier school years, but I never hated you.”

“Then tell me, why won’t you even look at me anymore Draco?” Draco felt himself shiver slightly at hearing his name come out of Potter’s mouth so easily. He wondered when Potter had decided it was time to change over to first names the same way he had done with Pansy and Blaise. Or perhaps the situation at hand was just too tense that Potter had said it without being aware of it himself.

“I…” Draco sighed as he leaned back against the door in defeat. “If you freak out, I’ll obliviate you.” Draco said as he looked straight into Potter’s eyes. Potter frowned. “Okay, I guess…?”

“I like you.” Draco felt his hands twitch a bit as he waited for Potter to process what had been said.

“You like me?” Potter eventually said, after a long pause. “I’m sure I made myself very clear, Potter.” Draco jeered, but his voice didn’t hold any animosity only a slight tremble of nervousness.

“Okay, that’s a relief. I definitely thought you hated me.” Potter slightly relaxed, and Draco just looked at him with an incredulously look on his face.

“I just told you I like you, as in not just as a friend.”

“I heard you.”

“That’s all?! I can’t believe you’re this calm. Are you not taking me seriously or do you just not like me to that extent?” Draco hissed, feeling impatient to get through this. He had revealed his feelings and the prat was still insisting on being the definition of calm.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m incredibly flattered by it, but I had to put you on the spot for a second as payback for having avoided me the last couple of days for such a reason.” Potter lips twitched as a smirk began to form. He leaned in closer to Draco. “I do like you too.”

“You’re a prat…” Draco mumbled, feeling a bit heated as he was pinned to the wall after having given a confession.

“I’m sorry.” Potter chuckled. “I have one request though.” Potter said, eyeing him carefully. “I know it might be hard, but I’d like it if you were to try calling me by my first name.”

Draco just stared at him for a moment. It felt like he would be giving in too much if he did as he said, but the closeness that would come from calling Potter by his first name was thrilling. “You’re an idiot… Harry.” Draco felt a slight shudder run through him as he looked away from the green eyes twinkling at him.

“Can I kiss you?” Harry asked with such a soft voice Draco had to strain himself to hear him.

Draco nodded, and Harry leaned in closer, gently pressing their lips together. Draco leaned into the kiss feeling his hands reach up to touch the mess of black hair on Harry’s head. Harry lightly bit down on Draco’s lower lip, earning him a moan and access to Draco’s mouth. There was a sweet tingle that shot through Draco’s body as he felt Harry trace the inside of his mouth. He couldn’t quite believe what they were doing.

“May I ask…” Draco breathed as their lips parted. “Since when have you liked me?”

“Well, I’d say from the moment you allowed yourself to be vulnerable with me, but it seems like I might’ve liked you since before that.” Harry said, lightly kissing him. “I enjoy being with you, and there were a few times I had to hold myself back from touching you.” Draco gaped at this. Was Harry for real? There was no way.

“You gave no indication of that at all!”

“I didn’t know how you felt, so I didn’t want to ruin the friendship we had managed to build.” Harry shrugged, being too calm about the situation for Draco’s liking.

“That’s ridiculous! And here I had to go through days of constantly worrying about it all!”

“I’m sorry.” Harry looked him in the eyes, obviously going for some sort of puppy-eyes. “Don’t try to act cute, Potter.” Draco scoffed, unable to withstand using his last name. That was certainly a habit he had to get out of.

“So, you find me cute?” The playful grin on Harry’s face was infuriating. “Shut it, just be glad you have a body like that.”

“Oh? Well, you would know wouldn’t you. Having my body for quite a while makes you know me fairly intimately already, doesn’t it?” Harry kissed him again, earning himself a shiver as he traced his hand up Draco’s back.

“I regret falling in love with you.” Draco gasped between the kisses. “Too late.” Harry grinned, Draco rolled his eyes as he reached for Harry’s hand and guided him over to his bed.

Draco lay down, dragging Harry with him. He felt a bit feverish as he took in the sight of Harry easily towering over him. “You’ll tell me at once if you want to stop, right?” Harry’s confidence seemed to have faltered a bit as he realised where they were headed.

“Don’t worry. I trust you.” Draco said reaching his hand up to brush a strand of loose hair from Harry’s eyes which were still filled with uncertainty. “I’ll tell you if I want to stop.” Draco said, knowing he had to reassure him before he would continue.

“I’ve never done this before.” Harry’s voice was soft as he spoke. Draco leaned up, pressing their lips together. “Me neither.”

Harry kissed back more intense this time, making Draco feel light-headed. He felt Harry’s hands sweep down his chest and slip under his shirt. His fingers trailed up his stomach, making Draco shiver. Harry pulled the shirt over his head, Draco shuddered at the way he was looking at him. He could feel his own arousal as he wanted to explore Harry as well. Sure, he had seen his body before when he was switched with him, but to be seeing it from this perspective…That was something completely different. He tugged on the shirt, and Harry seemed to get the gist of it as he pulled it off, revealing the toned body that had been hidden beneath the clothing. Draco felt his own hands reach out and start to explore the defined chest and broad shoulders.

Draco’s hand trailed up to Harry’s head and drew him closer as he leaned in to kiss him on the neck. Harry groaned at the sensation, inspiring Draco to continue his exploring as he licked his neck before kissing down his collarbone. He grazed his hand down Harry’s trouser and could feel his erection strain against the material. It was sending waves of pleasure through Draco as he realised it was because of him that Harry had reacted so much. He felt himself become more and more desperate to go further.

Harry got hold of his shoulders and softly pushed him down to the mattress. He continued kissing him, Draco leaned his head back allowing Harry more space to explore his neck, leaving marks as he kissed down to his collarbone. He left butterfly kisses down his stomach, stopping at the edge of Draco’s trousers. With a slow pace he unbuttoned them and pulled the zipper down.

Draco gasped as he felt his erection being freed from his trousers. Harry pulled his trousers and underwear down and easily slipped it off completely, leaving Draco completely naked.

Draco unconsciously tried to cover himself with his hands, as he felt vulnerable and too exposed. “You know, I’ve already seen your body before, but seeing it like this…” Harry breathed shakingly as he reached for Draco’s hands, bringing them to his mouth and kissing them tenderly. “You’re beautiful.” He muttered as he took in the sight in front of him.

Harry leaned down again, kissing Draco’s stomach, before lifting his leg slightly as he started kissing his thigh. It sent shivers through his body.

Harry was slowly trailing his way up Draco’s thigh, getting closer to his cock. “Fuck.” Draco mumbled as he covered his mouth. It was a sensitive spot and he didn’t want Harry to know just how easily it affected him.

Draco leaned back and gasped loudly as he felt Harry engulf him completely without warning. Draco felt his hips push upwards, desperate for more contact. Harry’s mouth was warm and wet, causing Draco to cry out as he felt the overwhelming pleasure. He tangled his fingers into Harry’s messy black hair, and continued to push his hips up, while Harry hummed around him, sending tremors up his body. He could feel his cock start to build up as he was nearing the edge. He mustered up the last he had of strength as he pulled on Harry’s hair, whimpering at the loss of contact.

Harry looked at him in surprise, but before he could question his actions, Draco pressed their lips together, as he deepened the kiss, he could feel the saltiness on Harry’s lips.

He slid his hands down Harry’s chest before struggling with opening his trousers. “Take them off.” Draco breathed into his mouth. “I want to…” Draco trailed off, understanding the intention, Harry squirmed out of his trousers taking his underwear along with it.

Although Draco had seen him before, he hadn’t seen him fully erect like this. His cock curved up proudly as he lay down allowing Draco to get on top. Draco swallowed as he took in the view. He slowly reached forward and took Harry’s cock into his hand.

“Fuck, you’re big.” Draco murmured as he stroked slowly up and down. Harry had leaned back and closed his eyes as he arched up to the touch.

Draco could feel himself shiver as excitement washed over him. He leaned down and slowly took Harry into his mouth. Harry groaned as he grabbed a fistful of blonde hair. As he started sucking down on him, Harry moaned loudly, sending shivers straight to Draco’s cock.

“Fuck.” Harry muttered as Draco pushed down, taking him as deep as he could. He pushed down a few more times, earning himself a string of moans, before pulling away slightly. He pumped his hand down Harry’s cock, licking the slit at the same time. He felt Harry tug at his hair, and as he leaned up, he was caught in a messy kiss.

Draco fell back onto the bed, pulling Harry with him as he did. “I want it.” Draco could hear his voice being hoarse as he spoke. “Please, let’s do it.”

“You sure?” Draco could see a faint hint of worry flash across Harry’s face as he bit his lip.

“You don’t want to?” Draco paused as he himself felt a tinge of worry wash over him at the thought of Harry not being as into it as he was.

Harry raised an eyebrow. “What do you think?” Draco shivered, feeling a surge of relief. “Let’s do it.”

Harry looked to the side of the bed, searching for his wand before casting a nonverbal spell at his hand. It procured a thick lube that he smeared across his fingers. Draco would’ve been impressed with his spell work, had it not been for the situation at hand taking all of his attention.

Harry shifted a bit and placed his hands on both of Draco’s thighs. He slowly spread them apart, allowing him to settle between them. It was beyond intimate, and Draco couldn’t help but feel embarrassed as Harry took a moment to take in the sight in front of him. He graced a hand along his thigh, and Draco felt truly and utterly exposed.

“Can I touch?” Harry asked, waiting for a reply as his hand patiently rested on his thigh.

“Yes.” Draco all but whispered back, not trusting his voice at this point.

He felt himself tense up as Harry grazed the tender skin. “You okay?” Harry looked worried as he stopped his movement, searching Draco’s eyes.

“I’m fine, just startled me a bit.” Draco said, trying to ease the tenseness with a shaky chuckle. Harry hesitated for a moment. “You can continue.” Draco assured him.

Harry slowly reached forward again and graced along his hole; Draco felt himself shiver. The feeling of having Harry touch him so intimately was overly erotic, he felt himself respond to the touch.

“It’s good, go on.” Draco murmured, as he let himself fall back and feel the sensation.

With a slow pace, Harry pushed a finger in, and Draco felt his body react as he spread his legs wider allowing more access. He moaned as he felt the heat enter him. Harry’s other hand was stroking his thigh in a soothing motion.

“It’s okay, you’re doing good.” He heard Harry’s soft voice. “Are you alright?”

“Yes.” It felt tight as Harry pushed further in. Draco clenched the sheets as he took a deep breath. As Harry pulled out and slowly pushed back in, and Draco focused on taking deep breaths, he felt the tightness slowly ease up a bit with the continuous motion.

“Can I add another one?” Harry still looked a bit worried, but Draco gave him a firm nod.

The feeling of another finger added more pressure again, and Draco had to steady himself. “You’re doing good.” Harry murmured as he slowed down his pace even more. “You’re so beautiful, Draco.” Harry kept his pace slow and steady as he waited until Draco started easing up a bit once more.

Draco gasped as another finger went in, but the tightness was much less prevalent now. Harry managed to get a steady rhythm going, and Draco felt shudders run through him at every push and pull.

“I want you. Please.” Draco felt himself plead as he gazed at Harry who was looking at him with hazy eyes.

At that Harry withdrew his fingers slowly, earning himself a gasp. Draco whimpered at the loss of contact but waited patiently as Harry once again conjured more lubricant onto his hand. He coated his cock, and Draco couldn’t help but stare as he did.

“If you feel pain then tell me at once.” Harry said, looking a bit hesitant as he leaned over him.

Draco felt himself grow impatient as his desires overtook him. “I will, just please!”

A small smile flickered across Harry’s face as he slowly guided his cock towards Draco’s hole. He hesitated for a second before pushing in. Draco gasped as he felt himself being filled up inch by inch. He could barely comprehend what was happening. The feeling of emotions consuming him as he locked eyes with Harry was insane. He felt both of them starting to connect as Harry continued pushing forward. He was big, and Draco felt himself being filled to the brim as he panted heavily with each push.

“I’m all in.” Harry murmured as he kissed Draco softly.

“Please, hold still for a moment.” Draco breathed as he tried to get used to the size.

“Of course, take your time.” Harry said softly, stroking Draco’s hair. They both stayed like that for a while, Harry keeping completely still until Draco took a deep breath and gazed up at him.

“You can try moving now.”

Harry slowly pulled out, watching Draco’s face for any hint of discomfort. When he was almost at the edge, he pushed back in even slower.

Draco gave a nod, indicating that he could continue thrusting into him. Harry once more pulled out and pushed back in with a little more force this time.

“Fuck.” He murmured. “You’re so tight, it’s amazing.” He groaned in pleasure. The thrusting became rhythmic and faster, Draco felt himself tighten even more at the thought that Harry was feeling the pleasure as well from thrusting into him.

He moaned as he felt his hands clench at the sheets, while Harry thrusted hard and steady.

“It’s good… So good.” Draco breathed out almost inaudibly. Harry gasped as he leaned forward, messily kissing Draco as he tried to keep his rhythm steady.

Harry slid his hand down to his cock, stroking it to the pace of his thrusting, making Draco whimper. “God. It’s so good. Fuck.” Draco felt himself start to ramble as he was building up.

“I’m… I’m coming.” Harry breathed shallowly into his ear. “Me… too…” Draco barely managed to whisper.

It felt like time completely stopped for a second as the last pulses of Harry’s hand around his cock and the messy thrusting made them go over the edge. Draco cried out as he felt himself spill his load heavily. He felt Harry shudder as he came inside of him, the combined feeling was insane.

Harry fell next to Draco, both panting unsteadily. They stayed silent for a moment taking in what had just occurred and feeling the aftermath of what they had been doing.

Harry turned to look at Draco, a hint of worry in his eyes. “Are you alright?” 

“I’m fine…It felt good” Draco mumbled, feeling tiredness creep up on him.

Harry leaned over and kissed his forehead, before lying back down embracing Draco. They both lay there, silence slowly taking over, as they felt sleep take hold of them. Draco shifted closer to Harry before closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep.

***

“You know… Going to a mind healer might not be such a bad thing.” Draco turned to look at Harry as he was watching the northern lights Draco had created in the ceiling of his bed one night when he couldn’t sleep. They had fallen into a dreamless sleep after yesterday’s adventure, and Harry was now lazily caressing Draco’s arm as they talked.

“It’s… I don’t know…I just don’t know if it’ll help.” Draco said, not wanting to completely dismiss the proposal since Harry was the one bringing it up.

  
“From my own experience, I can tell you that it did help quite a bit.” Harry traced his fingers along Draco’s arm as he spoke in a silent voice.

“You’ve been to one?” Draco looked at him with wide eyes. He didn’t think Harry of all people would ever be needing the help of a mind healer. He was a hero after all, wasn’t he? But then again, that was ignorant to think. If anything, Harry had been through the most.

“Yes, and it wasn’t a bad experience. They’ll be able to give you the right help and guidance to deal with what you’ve been through.” The way Harry spoke so tenderly, made Draco feel a sting in his heart. Harry truly only wanted to help him. Not out of pity or to get something out of it, no… Just out of understanding as to what he had gone through.

“If… I’ll go if you come with me.” Draco knew he was being difficult, but honestly, he wasn’t sure he would be able to go through with it unless Harry stood by his side.

“If you want me to, then of course I’ll come with you.”

“Also,” Harry said, looking at Draco. “I’ll have a talk with professor Shrew. I’m sure it will make it more difficult for him to disregard your skills once I vouch for you.”

“You don’t have to fight my battles for me, you know.” Draco said, not wanting to use Harry’s name to gain any favours.

“I’m not. You’re on the same level as Hermione when it comes to potions, you might even be better than her, and that says a lot. I’m also the one who messed things up for you when we were switched, so I’m gonna set right my own mistake is all.” Harry shrugged.

“You shouldn’t be too agreeable, or I’ll start to take advantage of you.” Draco snickered.

“If there’s something I can do to help you, then I won’t hesitate you know.” Harry said, as he leaned in and kissed him. “Also, I love you, so I might just allow you to take advantage of me whenever you like.” He gave Draco a lopsided grin.

“You’re far too easy to wrap around my finger.” Draco scoffed, earning himself a hearty laugh from Harry. 

***

Draco looked around the table at The Three Broomsticks. He would’ve never imagined seeing the current group of people gathered together like old friends. Just a year or so prior they had been on different sides in a war.

After agreeing to see a mind healer, Draco had felt a weight lift from his shoulders. The mind healer had given him multiple coping mechanisms to use, and they were slowly starting to work on his nightmare issues.

Somehow, the nightmares had already greatly subsided just from having Harry by his side. Waking up in the middle of the night and seeing Harry Potter sleeping next to him had made it easier to calm down. The feeling of warmth and protection was something he hadn’t realised he sorely needed.

‘Things can actually change, huh?’ Draco thought to himself as he sipped on his fire whisky. He had never imagined in a million years that he would actually be able to consider both Hermione and Ron as friends. However, the most farfetched of them all was him ending up with Harry Potter of all people.

Draco glanced over at Harry who was seated opposite of him. His stare was caught by green eyes as Harry gave him a grin. The candlelight on the table reflected in his glasses and outlined his striking features.

It was weird, Draco thought. Sure, he couldn’t deny that his inferiority towards Harry had somehow developed into admiration and desire much earlier than he would ever have himself admit. However, having the love be reciprocated had not dared to cross his mind.

Yet here they were. Comfortable in each other’s presence and able to go through their difficult past with the absence of blame or hatred.

Draco knew he had changed drastically since the war, and with the help of Harry and the others, he was no longer a Malfoy that would make his father proud. Deep down he felt a hint of satisfaction from the thought of it.

Although he still had to live with the decisions he made and those that he was forced to make, he was finally free to make new decisions that he could proudly stand by.

He felt a knee grace his under the table, and he looked up to see Harry looking at him with a hint of worry in his eyes. He must’ve made an expression as he was lost in his thoughts. Through the loud bickering of Ron and Blaise about quidditch teams, he mouthed an ‘You okay?’ Draco lightly pressed his knee into Harry’s and smiled, giving him a quick wink.

Harry, appeased by the response, seemed to relax more.

“You agree with me, don’t you Harry?” Ron was leaning over the table with desperation in his eyes as he continued to fight a losing battle.

“I’m sorry mate. I can’t help you if you insist on cheering for the losing team every time.” Harry chuckled, and Draco couldn’t help but laugh as he saw the betrayed expression on Ron’s face.

Pansy and Hermione was in a serious discussion involving the exams coming up before Christmas. Those two weren’t the ones who should be worrying about passing to be honest, Draco thought to himself. Ron was the biggest concern to the whole group at this point, although Draco still couldn’t help the uneasy feeling of Harry being so damn calm about everything. It was stressing him out, but he knew, if anyone was going to somehow get through it against all odds it would be none other than Harry Potter.

***

“Are you ready? We’ll have to leave now if we’re not gonna be late.” Harry said, leaning in the doorway. “Ron is ecstatic, by the way, having passed the transfiguration class that is” Harry grinned.

Draco gave a light chuckle, knowing full well how annoyingly miserable Ron had been for the past weeks now, mumbling on and on about not surviving a re-sit. “I’ll be there in a minute” Draco smiled, as he quickly went back to writing the last of the letter to his mother, while Harry went out to the common room levitating both his and Draco’s bags with him.

‘I’ll be heading home for Christmas now, and I’ll be bringing someone with me. I hope you do not mind. The skies have finally cleared, and I can honestly tell you that I am fine, mother. I hope you are doing well, and I’ll be swift in my arrival. Until then. Signed your son Draco Malfoy.’

Draco glanced at the handwriting once more before rolling it together and tying it to his mother’s owl that was waiting at the window.

He watched as it took off in a hurry, its long black wings gliding across the wind. It would surely reach his mother in good time for her to process the idea of her son bringing someone with him for Christmas. He did not think it would bother her much, as she had been writing to him several times about it only being the two of them for Christmas. He knew just how much she loved having guests over as it made the manor a little less grim. Surely, she would be frantically decorating the place the minute she read his letter.

As he could no longer see the owl, he turned and grabbed his cloak before heading to the door. He looked back at the shared dorm room. It no longer held signs of being two separate parts of a room. He smiled to himself as he twirled his cloak over his shoulders and grabbed the handle.

The door creaked as it closed, waiting for the return of a new semester. 


End file.
